The Malaysian Consultative Council of Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism, Sikhism, and Taoism led by its President Datuk A.Vaithilingam and accompanied by Mr. Ng Hong Pau (Buddhist), Rev. Dr. Hermen Shastri (Christian), Mr.K Shanmuga (Hindu), Sardar Jagir Singh (Sikh) and Mr Tan Hoe Chieow (Tao) met the Parliamentary Select Committee, Chaired by the Minister in Prime Minister Department YB DatuK Dr. Maximus Ongkili.
The Parliamentary Select Committee was made up of members from various political parties including UMNO, MCA, MIC, Gerekan, DAP, PAS and others.
Please read the statement which has been presented to the Parliamentary Select Committee.
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Statement to Parliamentary Select Committee on National Unity
1.1 Thank you for giving the Malaysian Consultative Council on Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism, Sikhism and Taoism an opportunity to present our views on the threats to national unity facing our beloved nation from the perspective of inter-religious relations.
1.2 The MCCBCHST is a duly registered society dedicated to the promotion of goodwill, harmony and unity. It comprises the national organisations of the five religions, namely Malaysian Buddhist Association, Buddhist Missionary Society of Malaysia & Sasana Abhiwurdhi Wardhana Society; Catholic Bishops' Conference, Council of Churches Malaysia & National Evangelical Christian Fellowship; Malaysian Gurdwara Council, Sikh Naujawan Sabha Malaysia & Khalsa Diwan Malaysia; Malaysia Hindu Sangam and Federation of Taoist Associations, Malaysia. Together, it serves as the representative body in matters of interfaith relations for the approximately 45% of the Malaysian population who does not profess Islam.
1.3 All aspects of Malaysian life and the institutions of governance have played vital roles in ensuring our relative peace over all these years. Foreigners are constantly amazed at how Muslims, Buddhists, Taoists, Christians, Hindus, Sikhs and all the other faiths in Malaysia survive together without bloodshed.
1.4 The MCCBCHST would point out that a fundamental reason for our harmonious co-existence has been the mutual respect we display for each other, in our understanding of different religious practices and requirements and in our ‘live and let live policy’ generally when faced with inconveniences placed on our respective religions. The fundamentals of our respective faiths have never wavered but we have been able to accommodate some of the more stringent requirements of outward practice in order to live together in peace. This has also been possible because the Government has considered itself secular (in the sense that it did not discriminate against other religions and only assisted Islam in the very limited scope authorised by the Federal Constitution.)
2. The most crucial and urgent problem causing disunity today: Infringements of the fundamental liberty to profess and practise one’s religion in peace and harmony by the so called “Islamisation” of all branches of government and the civil service
2.1 The MCCBCHST has been forced to issue a Note of Protest recently which details all our concerns. Copies of this Note of Protest are herewith provided.
2.2 The Note of Protest highlights the personal tragedies of ordinary Malaysians suffering anguish as a result, in one way or another, of the misuse of religion, e.g. persons who are treated as “Muslims” against their will, some who are being detained for “rehabilitation” merely because they want the government to recognise their choice of religion and women (and men) who are faced with the loss of their children merely because of the religious conversion by their spouses.
2.3 The rule of law appears to be set aside in Malaysia. Our Courts seem powerless to protect non Muslim rights as we saw in the still unresolved cases of Everest Moorthy, Shamala and now recently Subashini. In Terengganu, the State authorities demolished the Sky Kingdom even though there was a Court order telling them to hold on. Islamic authorities continue to convert non Muslim students in institutions of higher learning. Prison authorities allow prisoners to be converted to Islam despite prohibitions in the Lock Up Rules against this. Under-aged children still disappear, leaving their parents distraught, only to emerge days after their 18th birthday converted to Islam. Local authorities all over the country continue to act with disregard for the sensitivities of non Muslims in dealing with their places of worship.
2.4 Officials from the Islamic Religious Affairs Councils in the various states act with apparent impunity. Recently, we saw the Kedah State Religious Affairs Enforcement officials charging into the room of Christian tourists in the wee hours of the night in a wasteful display of ‘policing morality’. Quite apart from the impropriety of the Islamic Religious Affairs officers interfering and harassing a non Muslim couple, the larger question we should all be asking is this: Is it proper for the State to enact laws which interfere with the private lives of citizens, and for us to devote the precious resources of the State in such matters? Is there not more serious crime for us to be concerned about? Corruption, robberies, drugs, rapes and violent crimes continue to confound us – why are we snooping on ordinary law abiding citizens?
2.5 The Note of Protest contains as an annexure our Memorandum submitted to the Government, through the National Unity Advisory Panel, in October 2005 which contains an exhaustive summary of our position on various issues of concern as well as our suggested solutions to them.
2.6 The Note of Protest concludes with the following calls:-
“In a memorandum entitled ‘RESPECT THE RIGHT TO PROFESS AND PRACTICE ONE’S RELIGION’ dated October 2005, we had set out all these problems and urged the Government to make urgent legislative reforms to alleviate these concerns. Until today, no such reforms have been made and more and more Malaysians are suffering.
“After much deliberation, it is therefore our considered decision to make public that Memorandum and the reforms we had proposed together with our rationale for the same and to disseminate it both locally and internationally in order to encourage debate so we can all jointly seek solutions to these problems.
“We urge the Government to urgently alleviate these concerns, so that our nation and people can concentrate on the more pressing tasks that face us in achieving our shared national vision and aspirations.
2.7 Unless the concerns set out in the Note of Protest are addressed by the implementation of the very reasonable reforms suggested in the annexed Memorandum, the sense of disunity amongst Malaysians and the fear for their religious liberty and the sanctity of their family life by persons who do not profess Islam will continue.
3. Our hope for the future – children, schools and a sense of national unity
3.1 Various developments and aspects of teaching in schools are a cause of grave concern for many persons who do not profess Islam. Government schools have now become a sort of “Hobson’s choice” where if parents are able to afford it they are choosing to send their children to private schools if they can. This is partly because they feel the child will get a higher standard of education. However, the real fear is more because many non Muslim parents feel that their children will be discriminated against by teachers and school authorities.
3.2 Some examples of these fairly recent and worrying developments are set out below:-
3.2.1 The recital of a Muslim prayer at the start of the school day, and in some instances at the start of every class.
3.2.2 Some schools prohibit Muslim and non Muslim students from sharing food and utensils. In October 2006, the media carried reports of the actions of the teaching staff at SK Bukit Jelutong, Shah Alam prohibiting non Muslim students bringing “wet” food to the school’s Children’s Day celebrations. This was said to be “to respect each other’s religions”. But what a way to show respect: to totally brush aside the religious requirements and observances of non Muslims and assume that non Muslims would not be attuned to the need to bring only halal food to school. Yet, the sensitivities of vegetarian non Muslims or those who do not eat beef (such as many Hindus and Buddhists) are brushed aside because “they can choose not to eat those foods” if brought by Muslim children. (In this regard, the actions of our Parliamentarians in slaughtering animals on the grounds of Parliament and their apparent ignorance of how this would distress the non Muslim community show how badly we need to improve our interfaith relations.)
3.2.3 In team sports and school camps which are meant to be open for students from all races and religions, there have been instances when non Muslim students were also forced to wake up for prayers in the early hours of the morning. In some cases, they have been made to sit together with Muslims for their prayers rather than being allowed to pray separately.
3.2.4 There are many instances on record of government officials addressing students as “Kepada Muslim dan yang bakal Islam” (“To Muslims and to those who will become Muslims”) generating great unease to non Muslims worried that their children are going to be converted to Islam by the government. In a recent incident (reported in Malaysiakini on May 24, 2007) a student called Ragu was taken out from his classroom in a Government technical college by the ustaz. He says he was then forced to convert to Islam for fear of failing the course. This incident is particularly upsetting to non Muslim parents and lends credence to their fears that the Government is targetting their children for conversion and consequently breaking up their families.
3.2.5 A common problem amongst schools and the civil service generally is the lack of diversity in the ethnic and racial composition. There is a perception, which is supported by the figures, that the civil service is entirely dominated by Malays/Muslims. Many non Muslims feel they will not be treated fairly when dealing with the government.
3.2.6 There have been incidents of Sikh boys being told to cut their beards by school principals or discipline masters, apparently ignorant of this most basic and fundamental tenet of the teachings of the Sikh faith. In similar vein, there have been instances whereby Sikh pupils have also been forced to remove their bangles.
3.3 Our Proposals:
3.3.1 All civil servants generally must be made to take a course on religious understanding where the fundamental beliefs and practices of the different religions in Malaysia will be taught. Teachers must be given special training to ensure that they are adequately informed and sensitized so as to deal with the different requirements for children from different religions.
3.3.2 There should be more non Muslim teachers appointed.
3..3.3 A new subject called Citizenship & Moral Studies should be introduced into the school curriculum replacing the present subject called Morals.
a) Proper inter-ethnic and inter-faith relations, religious understanding (and not merely tolerance), constitutionalism and the rights and responsibilities of citizenship should be taught as part of the curriculum.
b) This should be done for all students no matter what their religion is to inculcate values common to all religions as well as for them to be made aware of the practices and sensitivities of other religions.
3.3.4 In addition, all pupils must receive studies in their respective religions in schools instead of merely Islamic studies for Muslim students.
4. Problems within the civil service and Government generally
4.1 We have received complaints from civil servants who have gone on the 3 or 4-day “Kem Bina Negara”. During this camp, non Muslims have been forced to wake up early in conjunction with the Muslim prayer times and made to sit together with the Malay Muslim congregation and forced to listen to speeches about the glory of Islam and the supremacy of the Malay race.
4.2 The imposition of the Muslim dress code on non Muslims (for example for women police officers who are now made to wear the tudung on ceremonial occasions) is also of great concern to us.
4.3 Our elected representatives, the Attorney General and the civil service appear to many not to be representing all the citizens, and in particular are not respecting the requirements for a secular Constitution which respects the rights of all faiths to be practised in peace and harmony.
5. General Proposals for Reform:
5.1 Again, we reiterate that the Legislative reforms proposed in the 2005 Memorandum annexed to our Note of Protest are reasonable, and urgently required.
5.2 The Government must allow Malaysians the freedom to speak on matters of inter religious ties.
5.2.1 The abrupt end ordered by the Government of the forums organized by the Article 11 coalition and the proposed Interfaith Commission remains a cause of great concern for us.. Both these initiatives have been wrongly portrayed by some quarters as being somehow “anti Islam”. Yet, if both initiatives are looked at objectively, they are meant to broaden the scope for dialogue between all Malaysians on issues of common concern.
5.2.2 The Article 11 forums dealt with Constitutional protections for all Malaysians. The proposed Interfaith Commission was a unique initiative designed to promote inter faith dialogue and to provide a conciliatory body with no adjudicatory powers to enhance inter religious harmony.
5.2.3 These initiatives were abruptly halted by the Government at the instigation of some quarters intent on turning Malaysia into a theocracy who are spreading misrepresentations about such initiatives. We must all realize that Malaysians are now far more developed and more educated. The availability of alternative media through the internet has changed the dynamics of our political system. The control of the print and television media appears archaic and autocratic.
5.3 We suggest therefore that the proposal to form the Interfaith Commission of Malaysia (proposed in February 2005 and which the Government then said would be looked into at a later date) be examined again. The concerns of those Muslims who objected to the proposal should be looked into and addressed in the formation of the Commission. However, a statutory interfaith body is urgently required in order to initiate and facilitate dialogue so that we can see how we can all continue to live together peacefully. In addition, talks, dialogues and speeches on the Constitution and the role of Islam in the Constitution should be allowed to continue.
5.4 The “Islamisation” policy must be halted. There should be no more referrals to the Fatwa Council on matters of general public policy. The Attorney General Chambers must stop its practice of seeing if laws are Syariah compliant. Politicians must stop using religion as a plaything of politics in order to garner popular support.
5.5 We ask also that the Government look into allocating some form of State funding for adherents of other religions to worship and to engage in social welfare activities. The gap between the rich and poor is growing in Malaysia, and there are many young people who are engaging in unhealthy actitivies and who require spiritual guidance. It is in the national interest that the Government should allocate funding in an equitable manner to all religions so that they can assist young Malaysians in getting spiritual and moral guidance.
6. Recent attempts to describe Malaysia as an Islamic State are detrimental to national unity
6.1 MCCBCHST categorically rejects any attempt to describe and administer Malaysia as an Islamic State.
6.2 The “innocuous” provision in Article 3 of the Federal Constitution was never
meant to transform Malaysia into an Islamic State. This was affirmed by the
Alliance (comprising UMNO, MCA and MIC) themselves in 1957 when our
Founding Fathers stated clearly and unequivocally that ‘The religion of
of Malaysia shall be Islam. The observance of this principle shall not
impose any disability on non-Muslim nationals professing and practicing
their own religions and shall not imply the State is not a secular State.’
6.3 We recall that this assurance was given by Tunku Abdul Rahman, Tun Abdul
Razak, Tun Tan Cheng Lock and Tun V T Sambanthan who were the
Signatories to the Independence of Malaya Agreement.
7. Conclusion
7.1 We reiterate once again the view the MCCBCHST has always held since its
inception in 1983 that Malaysians of all ethnic, religious and cultural
backgrounds can best resolve whatever differences of opinion which may arise
through peaceful engagement in mutual respect and genuine dialogue. The
MCCBCHST is firmly of the view that the majority of Malaysians remain
committed to the long history of inter communal amity and responsibility that
has allowed us to come this far so quickly over the past 50 years.
6.1 However, statements by certain extreme elements of society and the Government’s pandering to those extreme views are now creating a sense of fear and uncertainty amongst non Muslims who feel they are under attack and their rights as citizens are being slowly but surely eroded. National unity can only be achieved if our social contract embodied in the Federal Constitution is respected. Government, especially, must be the first to respect the Constitution.
6.2 As we approach our 50th anniversary as an independent nation, we urge all parties to continue to strive for a peaceful and just society which will find Unity in Diversity.
Dated 6th August 2007
Issued for and on behalf of the Malaysian Consultative Council on Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism, Sikhism and Taoism by
Datuk A Vaithilingam, PJN, SSA, AMN, ASA, PJK
President
Statement to Parliamentary Selected Community on National Unity
Thank you,
Yours in service,
Datuk A.Vaithilingam
President
MCCBCHST