Malaysian Bar Group Threatened With Suit Over Use of Word "Allah"

The Malaysian Bar, the organization that represents some 12,000 lawyers in Malaysia, recently posted a poll on its website asking lawyers to vote on whether the use of the word "Allah" is restricted to a particular group in Malaysia and whether non-Muslim religious publications should be allowed to use the term to refer to God. The poll came in the wake of a dispute between the government and a newspaper, the Catholic Herald, that used the term in its Malay language edition. (See prior posting.) Channel News Asia reported yesterday that the Islamic religious council in the state of Selangor has now threatened to sue the bar association for misuse of the word "Allah" on its website. Religious council head Mohamad Adzib Mohamad Isa said: "The issue raised in the polls can threaten the sensitivity of Muslims."