Showing posts with label Malaysia. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Malaysia. Show all posts

Monday, October 25, 2021

USCIRF Calls Attention To Persecution of Ahmadiyya Muslims

The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom has recently issued a new Factsheet on Persecution of Ahmadiyya Muslims, focusing particularly on issues in Pakistan, Algeria and Malaysia, saying part:

In these countries, authorities have targeted Ahmadis through hate speech and speech inciting violence against them, denied them citizenship, restricted their rights to worship, and prosecuted them for practicing their faith, including by charging them with, and in some cases convicting them of, blasphemy. Some states prohibit Ahmadis from declaring their faith publicly, criminalize them for identifying as Muslim, and prohibit them from calling their houses of worship mosques....

 USCIRF explains:

Because of the differences between Ahmadiyya beliefs and beliefs in Sunni and Shi’a Islam, many Muslims consider Ahmadiyya Muslims to be heretics.

Thursday, March 11, 2021

Malaysian Court Says Christian Publications Can Use the Word "Allah"

Bernama reports that in Malaysia, the Kuala Lumpur High Court has ruled that Christians may use the word "Allah" and three other Arabic words in their religious publications for educational purposes. The court held that a 1986 Home Ministry ban on use of the words was unconstitutional. Publications using the terms must also carry a disclaimer saying that the publication is only for Christians, and must also carry a symbol of a Cross. Litigation on the issue began in 2008. (See prior related posting.)

UPDATE: Daily Express (March 15) reports that the government has filed an appeal in the case.

Friday, February 26, 2021

Malaysia's Top Court Restricts Scope of State Power To Enact Sharia Law

In a decision handed down yesterday, Malaysia's highest court-- the Federal Court-- imposed significant limits on the power of Malaysian states to enact Islamic legal prohibitions, including laws that ban homosexual relationships.  The court struck down Section 28 of the Shariah Criminal Offences (Selangor) Enactment 1995-- a law of the state of Selangor that makes "sexual intercourse against the order of nature with any man, woman or animal" a criminal offense under Shariah law. Sections 377 and 377A of the federal penal code cover the same conduct.  As reported by Malay Mail:

Under Item 1 of the Federal Constitution’s State List, state legislatures can make laws on Islamic law ... "except in regard to matters included in the Federal List"....

... [T]he judge noted that the preclusion clause states “except in regard to matters included in the Federal List” and not “except in regard to matters included in the Federal Law”.

The judge explained that this does not mean that state legislatures have power to make law on matters that Parliament has not already made law on, and that state legislatures are instead unable to make law on matters that fall within Parliament’s jurisdiction, even if there is no such federal law yet....

With no challenge by any of the parties in the case over Parliament’s powers to make the Penal Code provisions that cover the same matter as Section 28, the judge said the Federal Court must accept that Parliament had competently enacted the Penal Code provisions in line with the Federal Constitution.

Malay Mail reports on the reaction of the Shariah Lawyers Association of Malaysia to the decision.

Friday, July 13, 2018

Malaysia Swears In First Non-Muslim Chief Justice

According to Benar News, Malaysia this week swore in its first non-Muslim Chief Justice of its highest court, the Federal Court of Malaysia.  The new chief justice is Richard Malanjum, a Christian member of the Kadazandusun tribe from Malaysian Borneo.

Tuesday, March 20, 2018

Suit Alleges Religious Discrimination In Flag Mix-Up

ACLU of Kansas announced yesterday that it has filed a religious and ethnic discrimination lawsuit on behalf of an employee of Spirit AeroSystems against a recreational organization open to Spirit employees.  The organization owns a recreational lake in Wichita, Kansas that can be rented by the organization's members. The complaint (full text) in Zanial v. Spirit Boeing Employees' Association, (D KA, filed 3/19/2018) alleges:
11. On September 2, 2017, Mr. Zanial rented space at the SBEA recreation lake to host a party celebrating the end of Ramadan. The party was attended by approximately 45 guests, the majority of whom were of Malaysian Indian ancestry. Several of Plaintiff’s female guests, including his wife, were wearing hijabs. 
12. Because the party took place shortly after the 60th Anniversary of Malaysian Independence Day, Mr. Zanial’s guest, Nik Azri brought a Malaysian flag to the party. Mr. Zanial and his guests took turns posing with the flag.
This led to a complaint being filed:
Following the party, SBEA reported Mr. Zanial to the Spirit Aerosystems (“Spirit”) security team based on a concern that Mr. Zanial was affiliated with radical Islamic terrorism and alleged that he had used the SBEA lake to hold an ISIS meeting. SBEA alleged that Mr. Zanial and his guests had an American flag that had been “desecrated by ISIS insignia” and were wearing “Muslim garb.” SBEA restricted Mr. Zanial’s membership so he could no longer rent property to host events at the lake.

Tuesday, March 06, 2018

Malaysia's Federal Court Says Conversions To Christianity Are For Sharia Courts

In Malaysia last week, the Malaysian Federal Court dismissed appeals by four women who seek to have their names and religious affiliation changed on their national identity cards-- from Muslim to Christian.  Three of the women were originally Christians, but embraced Islam when they married Muslim men.  Now they are divorced and wish to re-embrace Christianity.  The fourth woman is a convert from Islam to Christianity. According to World Watch Monitor, the country's highest civil court held that jurisdiction over these cases is only in the Syariah Courts, even though the Sarawak Shariah Court Ordinance 2001 has no provision for leaving Islam.  CBNNews yesterday further explained the implications of this holding:
In the past, Sharia courts have not allowed conversion from the Islamic faith.
Christian groups said they'll request Sarawak legislators to amend state law to allow conversion. In response, several Islamic groups said they plan to counter Christian conversion efforts by sending more Muslims into the state.
Located in Malaysia's east, Sarawak is about 40 percent Christian. Most Christians are Chinese ethnics. Overall, Christians are about nine percent of the Malaysia population while Muslims are about 61 percent. Leaving Islam is unthinkable for most ethnic Malays who believe to be Malay is to be Muslim.

Wednesday, September 13, 2017

Malaysian Prime Minister Urges Trump To Support Moderate Muslim Regimes

Yesterday President Trump welcomed Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak to the White House.  Both leaders spoke briefly (full text of remarks) in the Cabinet Room before their private meeting. Among other things, Razak urged Trump to support progressive Muslim regimes, saying in part:
Daesh, IS, Al-Qaeda, Abu Sayyaf  ... are the enemy of the United States, they are also the enemy of Malaysia, and we will do our part to make sure that our part of the world is safe.
We will also contribute in terms of the ideological warfare because you need to win the hearts and minds.  And the key to it is to support moderate and progressive Muslim regimes and governments around the world, because that is the true face of Islam; that is the authentic face of Islam.  The more you align with progressive and moderate regimes, the better it would be in terms of winning the hearts and minds of the Muslim world.
President Trump responded: "Right".

Tuesday, January 24, 2017

Malaysian Politician Wants Ruling On Sharia Court Conviction

In Malaysia, Parliament member Khalid Abdul Samad last month was fined RM2,900 (the equivalent of $650 (US)) by the lower shariah court for giving a religious talk without having religious credentials in violation of Section 119 (1) of the Selangor Islamic Law Administration Enactment. Khalid insists he was giving a talk about his trip to Palestine, and was not giving a religious talk. As reported yesterday by FMT News, Khalid now wants the Election Commission to rule on whether this conviction disqualifies him from serving in Parliament.  Malaysia's constitution provides that an MP is disqualified if convicted of an offense by a "court of law" and is sentenced to a jail term of one year or more, or is fined not less than RM2,000.  Khalid's supporters argue that his violation was not a penal offense, and the Selangor shariah lower court is not a "court of law."

Friday, March 25, 2016

Malaysian Civil Court Orders Recognition of Conversion Back To Christianity

In what the Borneo Post describes as a landmark case, a High Court judge in the Malaysian state of Sarawak has ordered the National Religion Department (NRD) to change a man's registration from Muslim to Christian and also to recognize his name change. The Star describes the decision in more detail. The man had been born into a Christian family, but the family converted to Islam when he was 8.  The court said in part:
His conversion to the Muslim faith was not of his own volition but by virtue of his parents’ conversion when he was a minor.
He is not challenging the validity of his conversion as a minor. But having become a major, he is free to exercise his right of freedom to religion and he chose Christianity.
The NRD had insisted on a letter of release from a Syariah Court, but the High Court concluded that the man's constitutionally protected religious freedom rights entitled him to obtain relief from a civil court.

Thursday, December 31, 2015

Malaysia Court of Appeal Says Civil Courts Have No Jurisdiction Over Religious Conversions

Malaysia Insider reports that yesterday in a 2-1 decision, Malaysia's Court of Appeal held that civil courts have no jurisdiction to void a contested conversion of three children to Islam. Only Shariah courts have jurisdiction. The Ipoh High Court (a civil court) had held that the conversion certificate entered by the Registrar of Conversion did not comply with Perak Shariah law because the conversion application was made unilaterally by the children's father, instead of by the children with the father's consent.  The children's mother, now divorced from the father, has also been battling with the father over custody of the children.

Friday, October 09, 2015

Malaysia's Federal Court Rules On Procedural Grounds Against Transgender Challenge To State Law

As previously reported, last November a 3-judge appeals court panel in the Malaysian state of  Negeri Sembilan struck down a state law barring Muslim men from wearing women's clothing. The appeal was brought by three transgender women who, a lower court had ruled, were required to wear men's clothing because they were born as males. The state appealed the ruling to Malaysia's Federal Court which yesterday set aside on procedural grounds the appeals court's November ruling. According to Free Malaysia Today, a five-judge panel of the Federal Court ruled that the challenge to the statute should have been decided initially by the Federal Court, rather than being brought to it on appellate review.

Tuesday, September 29, 2015

Malaysia's Federal Court Upholds State Ban On Producing Book Contrary To Islamic Law

As reported by Bernama and Malaysian Insider, Malaysia's Federal Court yesterday upheld against freedom of expression and other challenges Section 16 of the Selangor Syariah Law which criminalizes producing, disseminating or possessing for sale any book or document that is contrary to Islamic law.  ZI Publications and its director Mohd Ezra Mohd Zaid were charged by Selangore state authorities with violating Section 16 by publishing a book titled "Allah, Love and Liberty" written by a Canadian author and Muslim reformer Irshad Manji. ZI and Zaid challenged the validity of the state law in the Federal Court.  But Justice Raus, writing for a 5-judge panel, said that the constitutional protections for freedom of expression must be read together with provisions declaring Islam as the country's religion and giving states the power to control or restrict propagation of any religious doctrine or belief among persons professing the religion of Islam.

Wednesday, August 26, 2015

Malaysian Federal Court Upholds Death Sentence of Gardener Who Killed Doctor For Insulting Islam

Yesterday a 5-judge panel of Malaysia's Federal Court upheld the death sentence that had been imposed on a Pakistani Muslim gardener who in 2011 beheaded a doctor for whom he was working. The murder stemmed from a conversation between the two men in which the doctor had insulted the Kaabah, the building at the center of Islam's most sacred mosque. The New Straits Times reports on the decision.

Friday, November 07, 2014

Malaysian Court Strikes Down Law Restricting Transgender Rights

BBC News reports today that a 3-judge appeals court panel in the Malaysian state of  Negeri Sembilan has struck down a state law barring Muslim men from wearing women's clothing. The appeal was brought by three transgender women who, a lower court had ruled, were required to wear men's clothing because they were born as males. In what is seen as a major victory for transgender rights, the court ruled that the law is "degrading, oppressive and inhumane."

Tuesday, November 04, 2014

Overview of Malaysian Dispute On Use of "Allah" By Non-Muslims To Refer To God

Today's New York Times carries an interesting overview of the conflict in Malaysia regarding non-Muslims speaking or writing in the Malay language using the word "Allah" to mean "God."  Christians , who make up 10% of Malasia's population, regularly use the term, while the country's Islamic councils say it is reserved for Muslims.

Wednesday, October 29, 2014

Halloween Not For Muslims Says Malaysian Fatwa Council

In Malaysia yesterday, the National Fatwa Council released a ruling on its website categorizing Halloween as a Christian holiday that celebrates the dead.   According to Malay Mail Online, the fatwa said in part:
The Halloween celebration is clearly against the values of Shariah.  It cannot be celebrated by Muslims. To remember those who have passed away, Islam suggests the practices of reciting doa (prayers) and Quran.

Monday, October 20, 2014

Malaysian State Says It Will Enforce Mosque Attendance Law

Lawyers for Liberty (LFL) issued a statement today opposing the announced plans of the government of the Malaysian state of Kelatan to enforce a provision of a 1994 law that criminalizes the failure of Muslim men to go for Friday prayers in the local mosque three times in a row. Section 104 of Enakmen Majlis Agama Islam dan Adat Istiadat Melayu Kelantan 1994 (Enactment of Religious and Malay Customs--Kelatan 1994) imposes a fine equivalent to $305 (US) and up to one year in prison for violation of the requirement. According to LFL the law violates Malaysia's Constitution:
The provision would be in serious breach of article 5 on liberty of the person; article 8 on equal protection of the law; article 9 on prohibition on freedom of movement; and arguably article 11 on freedom of religion.

Monday, June 23, 2014

Malaysia's Top Court Denies Leave To Appeal Ban On Catholic Paper's Use of "Allah"

AstroAwani , MSN News  and AlJazeera all report on today's decision by Malaysia's highest court to refuse leave to appeal in a widely followed religious freedom case.  By a vote of 4-3, Malaysia's Federal Court denied an application by the Catholic Church for leave to appeal a Court of Appeals decision that barred the Catholic newspaper, The Herald, from using the term "Allah" in its Malay language edition to refer to God. (See prior posting.)  "Allah" has been widely used by Christians in Sabah and Sarawak to refer to God. However the government argues that its use in non-Muslim literature may confuse Muslims and lead them to convert.

Wednesday, May 07, 2014

Malaysian Court Rejects Church's Challenge To Seizure of Books Using Term "Allah"

Malay Mail reports that in Malaysia on Monday the Kuala Lumpur High Court dismissed a suit that had been filed in 2007 by Sidang Injil Borneo (Borneo Evangelical Church) challenging the Home Ministry’s decision to seize three boxes of Malay-language Christian educational books imported from Indonesia that contained the word "Allah." The books were seized in 2007 at the airport while in transit, but were returned to the church several months later. The High Court said it was bound by the precedent established by the Court of Appeal last October that prevented the Catholic Herald from using the word Allah in its Malay language editions.  The High Court said the Herald case concluded that the Arabic word “Allah” is not an integral part of the practice and faith of Christianity. (See prior posting.)

According to Malaysian Insider, critics of the decision say the judge ignored special laws on religious freedom in Sabah and Sarawak.

Thursday, March 20, 2014

Missing Malaysian Flight Generates Unusual Interfaith Cooperation In Malaysia

AP reports that the disappearance of Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 has led to interfaith cooperation in Malaysia that is unusual in light of the intense controversies between the country's Muslim majority and religious minorities (particularly Christians and Hindus). On Tuesday, an interfaith prayer service was held in a Kuala Lumpur shopping mall-- with participation by Muslims, Christians, Buddhists, Hindus and Taoists. Interfaith prayer services in the past have never had Muslim participation.