MALAYSIA: kebebasan beragama ??? ****
Posted: Tue Jan 03, 2006 12:26 am
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Discrimina ... n_Malaysia
Status of religious freedom in Malaysia
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
(Redirected from Discrimination against non-Muslims in Malaysia)
The status of religious freedom in Malaysia is a controversial issue. Islam is the official state religion and the Constitution of Malaysia provides for freedom of religion. However, questions including whether Malays can convert from Islam and whether Malaysia is an Islamic state or secular state remains unresolved.
Conversion from Islam
Muslims who wish to convert from Islam face severe obstacles. For Muslims, particularly ethnic Malays, the right to leave the Islamic faith and adhere to another religion is a controversial question, and in practice it is very difficult for Muslims to change religions. The legal process of conversion is unclear; in practice it is very difficult for Muslims to change their religion legally.
In 1999 the High Court ruled that secular courts have no jurisdiction to hear applications by Muslims to change religions. According to the ruling, the religious conversion of Muslims lies solely within the jurisdiction of Islamic courts.
In April 2001, a High Court judge rejected the application of a Malay woman who argued that she had converted to Christianity, and requested that the term "Islam" be removed from her identity card. The judge ruled that an ethnic Malay is defined by the federal Constitution as "a person who professes the religion of Islam." The judge also reaffirmed the 1999 High Court ruling and stated that only an Islamic court has jurisdiction to rule on the woman’s supposed renunciation of Islam and conversion to Christianity.
These rulings makes conversion of Muslims nearly impossible in practice.
The issue of Muslim apostasy is very sensitive. In 1998 after a controversial incident of attempted conversion, the Government stated that apostates (i.e., Muslims who wish to leave or have left Islam for another religion) would not face government punishment so long as they did not defame Islam after their conversion. However, whether the very act of conversion was an "insult to Islam" was not clarified at the time.
In April 2000, the state of Perlis passed a Shari’a law subjecting Islamic "deviants" and apostates to 1 year of "rehabilitation" (under the Constitution, religion, including Shari’a law, is a state matter). Leaders of the opposition Islamic party, PAS, have stated that the penalty for apostasy should be death.
Loss of right to marry
Azlina Jailani was a Muslim who converted to Christianity adopting the name Lina Joy. She was denied the right to register her marriage with the Registrar of Marriages. She is currently going through the secular courts to seek a a declaration that she is free to practise the faith of her choice, and have the word 'Islam' dropped from her identity card. Her legal case is based on the freedom of religion clause in the constitution.
Torture by police
Joshua Jamaluddin was incarcerated under the ISA for converting to Christianity. He later detailed his torture during his incarceration. Now he is an activist for allowing greater religious freedom in Malaysia.
Illegal imprisonment by family members
Aishah was captured and imprisoned by her own family members for wanting to convert before marrying her boyfriend. Eventually she escaped and has since left the country.
[edit]
Loss of right to work
Hilmi Mohd. Noor in his book "Circumcised Heart" describes his experiences during his detention resulting from religious persecution by the Malaysian authorities. Concurrently, there was lobbying by some Muslims in his company to get his job terminated.
Christian proselytization
Proselytizing of Muslims by members of other religions is not technically prohibited by federal law. It is however prohibited in most states and can lead to lengthy jail sentences and many strokes of the rotan (whipping). Most Christian and a few other religious groups in Malaysia put a standard disclaimer on literature and advertisements stating "For non-Muslims only".
In 2002 the government banned the Bible in Malay (Al Kitab) and in Iban (bap Kudus). Other materials such as books or tapes translated into Bahasa Melayu (local Malay) or Bahasa Indonesia (Indonesian Malay) are also discouraged. However, Malay-language Christian materials are available. Some states have laws that prohibit the use of Malay-language religious terms such as usage of the term "Allah" for God by Christians, but the authorities do not enforce them actively. The distribution of Malay-language Christian materials faced few restrictions in East Malaysia prior to the banning of the Bup Kudus. The Kudus uses the term "Allah Taala" for God. The ban has since been rescinded. The then Home Minister Abdullah Badawi claimed it was the work of an overzealous bureaucrat and he had then repealed the ban personally.
In recent years, visas for foreign clergy no longer are restricted, and most visas were approved during the period covered by this report. Beginning in March 2000, representative non-Muslims were invited to sit on the immigration committee that approves such visa requests.
[edit]
Places of worship
The government generally respects non-Muslims' right of worship; however, state governments carefully control the building of non-Muslim places of worship and the allocation of land for non-Muslim cemeteries. Approvals for such permits sometimes are granted very slowly. After a violent conflict in Penang between Hindus and Muslims in March 1998, the government announced a nationwide review of unlicensed Hindu temples and shrines. However, implementation was not vigorous and the program was not a subject of public debate.
The new pre-planned capital of Malaysia, Putrajaya, features a grand mosque as a prominent feature of the planned community. No land has been gazetted for places of worship for any other faith.
LIHAT JUGA: http://www.fpif.org/fpiftxt/2931
Status of religious freedom in Malaysia
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
(Redirected from Discrimination against non-Muslims in Malaysia)
The status of religious freedom in Malaysia is a controversial issue. Islam is the official state religion and the Constitution of Malaysia provides for freedom of religion. However, questions including whether Malays can convert from Islam and whether Malaysia is an Islamic state or secular state remains unresolved.
Conversion from Islam
Muslims who wish to convert from Islam face severe obstacles. For Muslims, particularly ethnic Malays, the right to leave the Islamic faith and adhere to another religion is a controversial question, and in practice it is very difficult for Muslims to change religions. The legal process of conversion is unclear; in practice it is very difficult for Muslims to change their religion legally.
In 1999 the High Court ruled that secular courts have no jurisdiction to hear applications by Muslims to change religions. According to the ruling, the religious conversion of Muslims lies solely within the jurisdiction of Islamic courts.
In April 2001, a High Court judge rejected the application of a Malay woman who argued that she had converted to Christianity, and requested that the term "Islam" be removed from her identity card. The judge ruled that an ethnic Malay is defined by the federal Constitution as "a person who professes the religion of Islam." The judge also reaffirmed the 1999 High Court ruling and stated that only an Islamic court has jurisdiction to rule on the woman’s supposed renunciation of Islam and conversion to Christianity.
These rulings makes conversion of Muslims nearly impossible in practice.
The issue of Muslim apostasy is very sensitive. In 1998 after a controversial incident of attempted conversion, the Government stated that apostates (i.e., Muslims who wish to leave or have left Islam for another religion) would not face government punishment so long as they did not defame Islam after their conversion. However, whether the very act of conversion was an "insult to Islam" was not clarified at the time.
In April 2000, the state of Perlis passed a Shari’a law subjecting Islamic "deviants" and apostates to 1 year of "rehabilitation" (under the Constitution, religion, including Shari’a law, is a state matter). Leaders of the opposition Islamic party, PAS, have stated that the penalty for apostasy should be death.
Loss of right to marry
Azlina Jailani was a Muslim who converted to Christianity adopting the name Lina Joy. She was denied the right to register her marriage with the Registrar of Marriages. She is currently going through the secular courts to seek a a declaration that she is free to practise the faith of her choice, and have the word 'Islam' dropped from her identity card. Her legal case is based on the freedom of religion clause in the constitution.
Torture by police
Joshua Jamaluddin was incarcerated under the ISA for converting to Christianity. He later detailed his torture during his incarceration. Now he is an activist for allowing greater religious freedom in Malaysia.
Illegal imprisonment by family members
Aishah was captured and imprisoned by her own family members for wanting to convert before marrying her boyfriend. Eventually she escaped and has since left the country.
[edit]
Loss of right to work
Hilmi Mohd. Noor in his book "Circumcised Heart" describes his experiences during his detention resulting from religious persecution by the Malaysian authorities. Concurrently, there was lobbying by some Muslims in his company to get his job terminated.
Christian proselytization
Proselytizing of Muslims by members of other religions is not technically prohibited by federal law. It is however prohibited in most states and can lead to lengthy jail sentences and many strokes of the rotan (whipping). Most Christian and a few other religious groups in Malaysia put a standard disclaimer on literature and advertisements stating "For non-Muslims only".
In 2002 the government banned the Bible in Malay (Al Kitab) and in Iban (bap Kudus). Other materials such as books or tapes translated into Bahasa Melayu (local Malay) or Bahasa Indonesia (Indonesian Malay) are also discouraged. However, Malay-language Christian materials are available. Some states have laws that prohibit the use of Malay-language religious terms such as usage of the term "Allah" for God by Christians, but the authorities do not enforce them actively. The distribution of Malay-language Christian materials faced few restrictions in East Malaysia prior to the banning of the Bup Kudus. The Kudus uses the term "Allah Taala" for God. The ban has since been rescinded. The then Home Minister Abdullah Badawi claimed it was the work of an overzealous bureaucrat and he had then repealed the ban personally.
In recent years, visas for foreign clergy no longer are restricted, and most visas were approved during the period covered by this report. Beginning in March 2000, representative non-Muslims were invited to sit on the immigration committee that approves such visa requests.
[edit]
Places of worship
The government generally respects non-Muslims' right of worship; however, state governments carefully control the building of non-Muslim places of worship and the allocation of land for non-Muslim cemeteries. Approvals for such permits sometimes are granted very slowly. After a violent conflict in Penang between Hindus and Muslims in March 1998, the government announced a nationwide review of unlicensed Hindu temples and shrines. However, implementation was not vigorous and the program was not a subject of public debate.
The new pre-planned capital of Malaysia, Putrajaya, features a grand mosque as a prominent feature of the planned community. No land has been gazetted for places of worship for any other faith.
LIHAT JUGA: http://www.fpif.org/fpiftxt/2931