Malaysia Today - Your Source of Independent News
Malaysia Today - Your Source of Independent News |
- Presiden UMNO sendiri pernah berkata "Allow Muslims to convert if they choose to"..
- Censuring the confused in their erroneous reading of verse (2:256) in the Holy Qurʾān
- Bruno Manser Fund takes Malaysian money-laundering case to the Swiss Federal Criminal Court
- ‘Pembawa obor’ PKR enggan bertanding pilihan raya
- Najib says has Indians’ best interest at heart
- Stemming the incoherence of misguided Muslim pundits
- Visualisation of the unseen
- MIC snubs Najib-Hindraf talk
- Gejala Melayu murtad sangat mengkhuatirkan
- The Malays must wake up konon
- Nurul Izzah's costly remarks
- Keep faith out of politics
- Now it’s time for Felda folk’s children to enjoy windfall
- Do you have licence from God to lord over us, Nash?
- Nong Chik: Elections after Chinese New Year
- Pemimpin-pemimpin politik jangan kiasu
- ‘Pemimpin Islam perlu sepakat dalam soal menjaga agama’
- Pahang, Selangor PAS back asset declaration move
- PAS Youth mulls declaring assets, upping ante on political foes
- Once a Muslim, always a Muslim
- Bigots, cronies, tyrants and thugs
| Presiden UMNO sendiri pernah berkata "Allow Muslims to convert if they choose to".. Posted: 11 Nov 2012 01:27 PM PST
Anak Sungai Derhaka Utusan Malaysia ataupun Lidah Rasmi UMNO berhempas pulas memutarbelitkan kenyataan Nurul Izzah Anwar. Ia berdasarkan soalan yang diajukan oleh Siti Kasim, seorang yang dilaporlan penganut Kristian berketurunan Orang Asli berhubung ayat suci Al Quran, Surah Al-Baqarah, ayat 256 berhubung konsep 'Tidak ada paksaan dalam agama (Islam)….' Question: "When you speak about freedom of religion, are you actually applying to the Malays as well? Thanks." Read more at: http://darisungaiderhaka.blogspot.com/2012/11/kata-pak-lah-pada-tahun-2007-allow.html#more |
| Censuring the confused in their erroneous reading of verse (2:256) in the Holy Qurʾān Posted: 11 Nov 2012 12:50 PM PST
Wan Ahmad Fayhsal bin Wan Ahmad Kamal It is important to note that the true scholars of Islām (ʿulamāʾ, sing. ʿalīm) who are experts in the exegesis (tafsīr) of Qurʿān are ever consistent in their interpretation and understanding on the meaning "there is no compulsion in religion" (Q2: 256). One must be aware that such command by God in His Own Words in the Qurʾān does not apply with regard to the Muslims who are already in the state of submission (hence the very meaning of the name Muslim is total and willing submission based on the correct way as decreed by Him through His Last Messenger – Prophet Muhammad) in the religion of Islām. Instead the verse is informing the Muslims not to coerce people from other religions to be submitted into Islām and becoming Muslim unwillingly. To make it clearer, this particular verse is intended to uphold the sanctity of Islamic missionary (daʿwah: literally means "making an invitation) and has proven to be imbued in the central tenets of Muslim ethics in conducting their missionary works for ages till present times – unlike, in contrast to the notorious Spanish Inquisition of the medieval time. The myth of Islam spread by the sword has long been dispelled even by the respected Orientalist – Sir Thomas Arnold (1864-1930) in his work "The Preaching of Islam: A History of the Propagation of the Muslim faith" (1896). Any attempt to invoke the notion of "intolerant" has no relevance whatsoever with regard to the verse above. From the authoritative exegesis attributed to Prophet Muhammad's Companion – Abdullāh b. Ibn ʿAbbās, who is considered to be the most knowledgeable of the Companions in tafsīr, as narrated by al-Fīrūzabādī (1329–1414) in Tanwīr al-Miqbās min Tafsīr Ibn ʿAbbās in which the phrase "there is no compulsion in religion" (Q2: 256) is understood to be referring upon the People of the Book (Christians and Jews) and the Magians after the Arabs submitted themselves into Islām. The scholars of tafsīr clearly indicated that it is addressed to the Muslims with regard to their treatment upon the non-Muslims in matters of conversion to Islām. These views are resonated in many authoritative tafāsīr (plural of tafsīr – exegeses of Qurʾān). And it has never ever being rendered in the opposite direction as pandered by certain quarters of confused Muslims – the likes of Islamic Renaissance Front (IRF) and Sisters in Islam (SIS) – that merely bantering upon uncouth slogans of enlightenment and reason in providing so-called alternative reading and understanding of the verse mentioned. Furthermore many confused Muslims have distorted the established understanding of this verse as explained by authoritative exegetes of Qurʾān (mufassirūn, sing. mufassir) by reading it in piecemeal basis without having a recourse of reading the verse in its totality and organic whole via linking the verse with its precedents verses and the following verses which carrying the same theme of "truth and falsehood is clearly manifested." They tend to essentialise the command of God as rendered in Qurʾān – meaning to divorce the Qurʾānic injunctions and exhortations from its existential realities. This is wrong, as Islām is a religion that comprises both ideals and realities in which both are harmoniously linked in projecting the true image of the religion of Islam as perfectly exemplified in the living tradition of Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him!) and the heirs of Prophetic knowledge and duties - the true scholars of Islam. This worthy heir of Prophets (peace be upon them all) has been guaranteed by himself in his saying: al-ʿulamāʾ warith al-ānbiyāʾ - "Scholars (of Islām) are heir of Prophets". Such endeavor of interpreting and rendering the best meaning of religious injunctions was first completed by the Prophet Muhmmad himself and followed through now by his apparent heir – the competent scholars of Islamic sciences who always ensure their efforts, to the best of their abilities, are complying to the basics of epistemology in Islām. It is not and can never be based upon mere personal speculations and conjectures that sprung out from the whims and fancy of its learned adherents i.e. Muslim scholars, what more from the laity Muslims like the confused lot of IRF and SIS. True Muslims – that is true to its namesake of 'being a Muslim' – are conscious enough, furthermore willingly submit themselves under the established religious injunctions and will know his or her limits in negotiating the boundaries without ever transgressing the extremities or coming up short in fulfilling their religious obligations as what have been delineated by the Muslim scholars which have been deduced from and originally based on the established knowledge and perfect practices of the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him!) Such religious rulings and injunctions (aḥkām, sing. ḥukm) could only be derived by the able and eligible scholars that have fulfilled the fundamental and necessary requirements to perform what technically is termed as ijtihād (deriving the injunctions from established sources of knowledge in Islam) – or issuing legal opinions (fatwā), as outlined in the pristine tradition of religious sciences in Islām. Qurʾān is not a book of quotations that simply can be cherry-picked by any Muslims to form their own personal interpretation on religious rulings and injunctions. Laymen that have not possessed the right knowledge, mental and spiritual aptitude are not adept to put forth their views (in truth it is just their personal conjecture) without having recourse to the previous scholarships on the exegeses of Qurʿān. To the inept – especially current politicians and poser-Muslim scholars who have not endured rigorous and specialized training of issuing Islamic legal opinions and interpretations – the depth and systematic intricacies of Quran will never be manifested upon them as God the Almighty have said in the the Qurʾān: "But none knows its true interpretation, save only God and those who are firmly rooted in knowledge (rāsikhūn fī'l-ʿilm)." (Q3:7) Of course such exhortations above are not binding upon non-Muslims and they have total freedom in relation to the general precepts of the established Muslim scholarship with regard to the verse discussed here but it is a different case altogether for Muslims, as they must have recourse upon proper authorities in knowledge pertaining to it. One of the authorities that have untangled this confusion was Shāykh Amīn Aḥsan Iṣlāḥī (1904-1997), the celebrated author of Tadabbur-e-Qurʾān ("Pondering over the Qurʾān"), which made use of his late teacher Mawlānā Ḥamīduddīn Farāhī's (1863-1930) scholarship on the idea of thematic and structural coherence in Qurʾān. Referring to the verse 256 in chapter 2 of the Qurʾān, Iṣlāḥī is fully aware of the tendency for confused Muslims throughout the ages of using the notion of "there is no compulsion in religion" in making the religion of Islām conform to their fancy, whims and desires: "Some people unfortunately take this verse away from this sense and try to use it for rejecting all legal constraints. They argue that since there is no compulsion in Islām, any attempts to invoke punishments for certain acts are invalid in Islām and are, moreover, mere fabrications on the part of 'mullahs' (note: Muslim scholar title that is widely used in India and Pakistan). If this line of argument is accepted as valid, it would mean that the Islamic Sharīʿah (i.e. Law) is without any prescribed punishments and penalties and that it allows people to behave and act as they please without imposing any restrains on them." (pg. 601-602. Iṣlāḥī, Amīn Aḥsan, Tadabbur-e-Qurʾān, "Pondering over the Qurʾān", trans. Mohammad Saleem Kayani, Kuala Lumpur: IBT, 2007) Iṣlāḥī further explains such understanding is totally unfounded in Islamic tradition: "This is a fallacious argument, because we all know that Islām has a whole system and a penal code of its own, the implementation of which is a most important and basic Islamic obligation. An Islamic government can punish a Muslim if he fails to observe Prayer (note: especially the obligatory communal Friday prayer for men) or fasting. And this does not at all contravene the principle that "there is no compulsion in religion". Undoubtedly, Islām does not sanction the use of any compulsion to convert others. At the same time, however, it does not allow anyone entering its fold to behave in any manner they fancy without being questioned or held accountable for their conduct." (pg. 602. Iṣlāḥī, Amīn Aḥsan, Tadabbur-e-Qurʾān, "Pondering over the Qurʾān", trans. Mohammad Saleem Kayani, Kuala Lumpur: IBT, 2007) This observation by Iṣlāḥī is not a mere theoretical exegesis but can be further corroborated with ample historical evidences on the real practices of the Muslim throughout the ages – especially in the past where Islamic government was firmly established. This legal injunction of delivering and maintaining religious practices falls under the rubric of maintaining public duties in Islām or technically called "Ḥisba". Such acts that falls under the rubric of ḥisba has strong Qurʿānic bases (Q3:104, Q3:110, Q3:114, Q7:157, Q9:71, Q9:112, Q22:41, Q31:17) and is considered to be one of the most important tenets after the Five Pillars of Islām (arkān al-Islām) and Six Pillars of Faith (arkān al-Imān) in Islām which is called "enjoining good and forbidding evil" (al-amr bi'l-maʿrūf wa'l-nahy ʿan al-munkar). It is safer for us not to digress from our real discussion above on the issue of "there is no compulsion in religion". For thorough reading on ḥisba, please refer to Muhtar Holland's "Public Duties in Islam" (Leicester: Islamic Foundation, 1982) a translation of a legal treatise entitled al-Ḥisba fī al-Islām by the famed Muslim jurist of 13th century – Taqī al-Dīn Ibn Taymīyah. Alas suffice here for us to be really aware that interpretations made on the discussed verse "there is no compulsion in religion" by certain quarters of the confused Muslim is not as simple as they think, especially when it comes to really grasping the understanding of a particular verse in relation to other preceding and posterior verses, what more reading that particular verse in the light of the gestalt of Qurʾān where the dictum "the whole is larger than the sum of its part" rings louder than any kind of book ever existed in the history of man – be it religious or secular. If we want to understand Qur'ān correctly, one must resort to various other analytical tools not just limiting it to plain-dry modern notions of "analysis" that dicing things out beforehand in order to examine and arrive at the crux of the matter. Some of the analytical tools that are firmly established since day immemorial of Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him!) resided in the science of interpretation (tafsīr) of Qurʾān. Such analytical and exegetical devices, the likes of the reasons of revelation (asbāb al-nuzūl) and abrogations (nasikh wa al-mansūkh) are strictly unique in the religion of Islām. Those devices (some became science of itself, e.g. ʿilm al-rijāl - knowledge on evaluating the credibility of narrators of the hadīth) have been laboriously refined by Muslim scholars via countless numbers of commentaries (shurūh, sing. sharḥ), super-commentaries and glosses (ḥawāshī, sing. ḥāshīah) and the findings have been infused into many other Islamic sciences notably jurisprudence (fiqh). That is why the learned scholar of Islām, Professor Syed Muhammad Naquib Al-Attas keeps emphasizing that the science of tafsīr is based on established knowledge not conjecture and it is not the same as hermeneutics; which means only the competent – not just among the lay Muslims but moreover among the Learned Muslim (ʿulamāʾ) whom themselves have mastered various branches of Islamic sciences – have the rights to deliver their interpretation upon such verses, especially on the subject of this discussion that falls under one of the most basic tenets of faith (imān) and deemed to be unclear to many especially in these modern times. It is best for all Muslims especially the confused lot to pay heed to Prophet Muhammad's (peace be upon him!) saying (ḥadīth) – which is the second most important source of knowledge in Islamic sciences after Qur'ān – as narrated by al-Bayhaqī: "This knowledge (the religious) will be held in every generation by those who are just (meaning – the Learned [ʿulamāʾ]) and they shall protect it against the falsification of the extremists (taḥrīf al-ghālīn), the fabrication of the deceivers (intiḥāl al-mubṭilīn) and the misinterpretation of the ignorant (taʾwīl al-jāhilīn). If the confused Muslims keep railing about this despite umpteenth times being censured by authoritative Muslim scholars on their reckless and half-truths (which is more dangerous than plain error!) interpretations, then they are no better than the extremists who took the verse: "kill the idolaters wherever you find them" (Q9:5) by decontextualizing and accepting it based on mere face value in order to justify their anger and the continuance of their act of manslaughter in the name of religion (God forbid!). Indeed, if they continue to affirm and latch upon errors without having any thought to relinquish them and seeking the truth of the matter through proper ways and means – as explained above – they will go astray from the consensus (ijmāʿ) of the Muslim scholars in matters of creed (ʿaqīdah) where there has never been disagreement and indulgence whatsoever in matters of distinguishing and affirming the truth from the error. Verily Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him!) has stated, as narrated by Ibn Majāh: "My Community shall never agree upon misguidance, therefore, if you see divergences, you must follow the overwhelming majority of Believers (al-sawwād al-āʿẓam)" The writer is a research fellow at Himpunan Keilmuan Muslim (HAKIM). He currently reads Islamic Thought and Civilization at Centre for Advanced Studies on Islam, Science and Civilization (CASIS-UTM) as well a lecturer at Kolej Universiti Islam Selangor (KUIS). |
| Bruno Manser Fund takes Malaysian money-laundering case to the Swiss Federal Criminal Court Posted: 11 Nov 2012 12:46 PM PST
The Bruno Manser Fund (BMF) and 255 Malaysian citizens ask to be admitted as private plaintiffs to an ongoing money-laundering case against Swiss bank UBS – Malaysian government and judiciary accused of "state failure" and "collusion" with UBS customers Musa bin Aman and Michael Chia (BELLINZONA, SWITZERLAND) Swiss NGO, the Bruno Manser Fund (BMF), and 255 citizens from the Malaysian state of Sabah are asking the Swiss Federal Criminal Court in Bellinzona to be admitted as private plaintiffs in an ongoing criminal case against Swiss bank UBS. The case has been opened by the Swiss Attorney General on 29 August 2012, following a criminal complaint by the Bruno Manser Fund. UBS is accused of having laundered over 90 million US dollars on behalf of Musa bin Aman, Chief Minister of the Malaysian state of Sabah, and his nominee Michael Chia. Musa bin Aman is accused of having raised these funds illegally from local businessmen in return for granting logging concessions and timber export permits. The rainforests in the East Malaysian state of Sabah, located on the island of Borneo, are one of the world's biodiversity centers. They have been gravely damaged by excessive logging and the massive conversion of forests into oil palm plantations. On 26 October 2012, the Swiss Attorney General ruled that BMF should be excluded from the ongoing UBS/Musa case as the NGO had not been directly damaged by the bank's laundering of Malaysian timber corruption proceeds through UBS accounts in Hong Kong, Singapore and Zurich. "State failure" and "collusion" of Malaysia's highest authorities In a complaint lodged last week by the Bruno Manser Fund against the Attorney General's decision, the NGO argues it should be admitted as a plaintiff to the case in order to represent 255 citizens from Sabah and the Malaysian public. The NGO's lawyers are arguing that the Malaysian authorities, who would have had the right to be heard in the case, are „incapable of action" in the matter due to „state failure" and „collusion" of the country's highest political representatives and its judiciary with the alleged money-launderers. Due to the authorities' failure to represent the interest of the Malaysian public, BMF and Malaysian citizens represented by the NGO should be admitted as plaintiffs to the case in order to guarantee fair procedures. BMF's submission to the Swiss Federal Criminal Court underlines that Malaysia's de-facto law minister, Nazri bin Abdul Aziz, stated in Parliament in Kuala Lumpur that UBS customer and suspected money-launderer Michael Chia was carrying 13 million Singapore dollars in donations for Sabah UMNO, Malaysia's ruling party, and that Mr. Nazri's son is driving a car registered under the name of Michael Chia. Furthermore, the Swiss court has been made aware of the fact that UBS customer and suspected money-launderer, Musa bin Aman, is the brother of the Malaysian Minister of Foreign Affairs, Anifah bin Aman, and that Musa's wife is a relative of the wife of Malaysia's Attorney General, Abdul Gani Patail. „Therefore, Musa bin Aman is not only the dominant political player in Sabah but also enjoys protection from the highest political and judicial authorities in autocratically-ruled Malaysia", the complaint concludes. It is expected that the Swiss court will decide on the admission of BMF and the private plaintiffs from Sabah to the case within two to three months. Under Switzerland's tough anti-money-laundering laws, it is forbidden for Swiss companies to be involved in corruption and money-laundering in their worldwide operations. However, only rarely have companies been held responsible for such crimes.
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| ‘Pembawa obor’ PKR enggan bertanding pilihan raya Posted: 11 Nov 2012 08:18 AM PST
(TMI) -- Presiden PKR Datuk Seri Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail tidak berminat untuk bertanding dalam pilihan raya umum (PRU) akan datang mengatakan beliau mahu menghabiskan masa berkempen untuk Pakatan Rakyat (PR) daripada untuk dirinya sendiri.
Bekas ahli parlimen Permatang Pauh selama dua penggal itu tidak boleh bertanding di kerusi parlimen selama lima tahun di bawah undang-undang selepas meletakkan jawatan bagi memberi laluan kepada suaminya, Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim kembali ke parlimen. Akan tetapi beliau masih lagi layak untuk bertanding di kerusi dewan undangan negeri (Dun) sama ada di Pulau Pinang, tempat beliau mendaftar sebagai pengundi atau Selangor dimana beliau menetap sekarang. "Saya mahu bebas berkempen di semua tempat," Dr Wan Azizah memberitahu The Malaysian Insider dalam sebuah temubual eksklusif baru-baru ini. "Jika saya bertanding, saya akan terhad kepada kawasan saya," tambah beliau, jika dipilih, beliau mahu komited sebaik mungkin untuk memenuhi harapan pengundi, yang memerlukan beliau untuk terus berhubung dengan penduduk di satu kawasan berbanding dengan asas lebih besar di peringkat kebangsaan. Dr Wan Azizah telah menggepalai parti berbilang kaum tersebut semenjak penubuhannya pada tahun 1999 selepas pemecatan suaminya daripada jawatan timbalan perdana menteri dan pernah berperanan sebagai ketua pembangkang. Beliau bertanding bagi pihak suaminya di kubu kuat keluarga di Permatang Pauh, Pulau Pinang dalam pilihan raya 1999 dan berjaya mempertahankannya dalam kedua-dua pilihan raya berikutnya sebelum memilih untuk meletakkan jawatan. PKR Selangor telah menawarkan empat "kerusi Dun selamat" kepada beliau — Kota Anggerik, Seri Muda, Seri Setia dan Sementa. Sejak berhenti sebagai ketua pembangkang Parlimen - jawatan disandang selama lima bulan — Dr Wan Azizah mengambil tempat duduk belakang dalam politik, menjadi pemimpin parti politik yang hanya muncul di khalayak ramai apabila diperlukan. Beliau mengeluarkan kenyataan sebagai presiden parti biasanya semasa musim perayaan atau di persidangan parti dan mengenai isu-isu yang membangkitkan kemarahan orang ramai, seperti kenaikan kadar jenayah di seluruh negara. Tidak seperti rakan-rakan politik lelaki lain, Dr wan Azizah tidak ragu-ragu menjadi pemain dibelakang tabir dalam politik. Malahan beliau gembira dengan peranan tersebut. "Saya telah sentiasa dilihat diri saya sebagai membantu dari belakang tabir. Saya masih pembawa obor dalam erti kata itu. "Saya fikir saya masih dikenali sebagai Keadilan," kata nenek yang akan berusia 60 tahun bulan hadapan. Tetapi beliau mengakui bahawa pilihan untuk bertanding atau tidak, tidak lagi di tangannya jika parti beliau dan pakatan pembangkang PR membuat kemajuan sebenar dalam usaha untuk merampas kawalan Putrajaya dari gabungan Barisan Nasional (BN). "Saya pernah bertanding dalam pilihan raya sebelum ini. Ia bukanlah sesuatu yang boleh diambil mudah," katanya. Pilihan raya umum ke 13 — yang perlu diadakan pada April depan selepas mandat BN tamat — akan menjadi pilihan raya terhebat untuk merampas kuasa di peringkat federal, kata Dr Wan Azizah. Dalam pemerhatian beliau, pengundi sudah lebih arif dalam tempoh empat tahun lepas dan pembangkang tidak lagi boleh bergantung kepada rasa tidak puas hati pengundi terhadap BN untuk mendapatkan sokongan ke arah PR. "Sekarang, kita mahu mengetahui dengan lebih lanjut tentang siapa yang akan mewakili kami. "Rakyat Malaysia sudah bersedia untuk berubah dan kita perlu tawarkan itu," katanya. |
| Najib says has Indians’ best interest at heart Posted: 11 Nov 2012 08:12 AM PST
(TMI) -- Datuk Seri Najib Razak has assured the Indian community that the government would fully honour its hopes and trust and walk hand in hand to help realise its dreams and aspirations.
"We have been consistent in delivering on realistic and responsible promises made to the Indian community as we do not believe in promising the impossible just to gain power and popularity. "I sincerely believe that Malaysia's best times are ahead of us and to scale those great heights of progress and prosperity, we must all unite behind the vision of a just, fair and successful country. "As our transformation programmes begin to show results, we will ensure that every Malaysian, including Malaysian Indians, will have better incomes and importantly, a better quality of life for current and future generations," said the prime minister in his Deepavali message posted on his blog at 1Malaysia.com.my. Najib said all throughout this journey, the Indian community had played a pivotal role that all Malaysians recognised and cherished. "On the occasion of Deepavali this year, I take the opportunity to thank the Indian community for their selfless contribution towards building a safe, peaceful and prosperous Malaysia," he added. The prime minister said while the Indian community fully participated in nation building since independence, it also faced many challenges, especially as they adjusted to life in towns and cities throughout the country. "I am well aware of the problems the Indian community has and is facing, and that is precisely why the government has implemented many specific measures to address problems specifically faced by the Indian community. "In the last three and a half years, we have executed various new and innovative approaches towards resolving longstanding legacy problems faced by the Indian community. "This has resulted in real and positive impacts on Indian families nationwide. Many major challenges in various sectors involving the Indian community have received the attention of the government," he said. Najib said the celebration of Deepavali, which signifies the victory of light over darkness, most fittingly reflects the journey of our multiracial diverse country over the last 55 years. "Our journey from Merdeka to where we are now as a major developing nation on course to becoming a high-income developed nation by 2020 has indeed seen us overcome many obstacles to reach our objectives. "Our forefathers, and the generations that followed them, have worked together as one in fighting against the darkness and the challenges that faced our shared nation so that all Malaysians may enjoy better lives," he said. The prime minister said the government's transformation initiatives and efforts to uplift the Indian community would not have been successful without the trust or "nambikei" between the Government and the people. "Through this partnership which centred on mutual understanding and hard work, we have together brought the light of hope to families and individuals, enabling them to live better and happier lives. "The continued 'nambikei' between the government and the Indian community will empower the government to continuously bring growth and progress to the community. "This will be done through various focused initiatives that will ensure our assistance and services reaches every Indian in Malaysia that needs some help to stand on their own two feet," said Najib. The prime minister said to achieve all shared ambitions for the Indian community, all quarters must realise that they still have a lot of work to do together. "I can't do this alone and only with the support and trust of the Indian community, and all other communities, can we make this journey of transformation a meaningful and successful one," he said. — Bernama |
| Stemming the incoherence of misguided Muslim pundits Posted: 11 Nov 2012 12:25 AM PST Indeed, it is most peculiar while Muslim pundits especially in IRF and SIS prefer to chastise people for not looking at the context of the verse but in this case, it is they who remain blind to the context. If we allow the promissory note for such literal interpretation of the verse devoid of scholarly consensus and right guidance, then there would be nothing left to prevent the likes of fanatics, demagogues and even militant extremists from appropriating Islām in order to justify atrocities and perpetuate even further injustices. Muhammad Husni Mohd Amin, Wan Mohd Aimran Wan Mohd Kamil, Muhammad Syukri Rosli and Wan Ahmad Fayhsal Wan Ahmad Kamal We are gravely concerned with the recent development in the aftermath of forum "Islamic State: Which version? Whose responsibility?" which was held at Full Gospel Tabernacle. It is truly shameful that the affairs of Muslims were being discussed without the guidance of scholars of Islām possessing true and correct knowledge of the religion. What is even more disconcerting is that the so-called representatives who were invited to speak on behalf of Islām at the forum appeared to be allow their political expediency to colour the content and tone of their presentation. How can one even be sure that they are speaking earnestly and truthfully on behalf of Islām? To begin, let us return to the original controversial statement made by a certain politician at the forum pertaining to religious freedom and Islam as recorded in the transcript produced after the event: Nurul Izzah: Yes, umm, but the idea itself, I think, goes back. And when you ask me, there is no compulsion in religion, even Dr (Ahmad) Farouk (Musa) quoted that verse in the Quran. How can you ask me or anyone, how can anyone really say, 'Sorry, this only apply to non-Malays.' It has to apply equally… apply equally. The audience applauds. Nurul Izzah: In the Quran, there is no specific terms for the Malays. This is how it should be done. So I am tied, of course, to the prevailing views but I would say that. - Transcript produced by Malaysiakini Before we delve into the merits of her statement, let us address the oft-repeated defence made on her behalf that she was unfairly and grossly misquoted by a biased press as part of a widespread 'smear campaign' against her. Our reply to this facile objection is that even if she was misquoted, one can view and read her actual recorded statements on YouTube without the mediation of a so-called biased press and thus come to one's own free judgment regarding what she has said and how she said what she said. Hence, to absolve oneself from passing correct judgment on the merits of what she has said on the excuse that she was misquoted by a biased press does not and cannot be allowed to stand unchallenged, especially if such a position is stubbornly held by those who make Islam their political raison d'etre. If such groups persist in holding on to such a position, then it represents a cover up of one's political bias and one-sidedness. Furthermore, a non-Muslim making ignorant statements about Islām may be excused on the basis of not himself being a Muslim and of being obstinate. Yet, a greater cause for concern is when a ignorant Muslim makes ambivalent declarations about the nature of Islām as a religion. With this in mind, we should ask the important question, which is worse: somebody making untrue statements about other people's religions, or somebody making indefensible and unsound statements about his or her own religion? In her effort to salvage the situation, Nurul Izzah brought up the following argument that she posted on her blog, "Namun ditambah, saya berpegang pada pendirian umum sedia ada, iaitu setelah memeluk Islam, seorang Muslim tertakluk dengan Syariat Islam; sebagaimana seorang warganegara tertakluk dengan Perlembagaan Persekutuan." It is incorrect for Nurul Izzah to clarify her stand by equating, if not denigrating, a Muslim's being subject to the laws of Shari'ah with a citizen's being subject to the Federal Constitution. In fact, this betrays a categorical confusion on her part because from the Muslim understanding, Islām is the true revealed religion, and the affirmation of this fact has consequences both in this world and in the hereafter. In contrast, a legal document, which is man-made, is subject to societal conventions and has consequences only so long as the convention is observed and maintained. A citizen can willingly give up his or her citizenship and other rights accorded in the laws of a country. However, the case is different for the Muslim who is subjected and obligated to all aspects of the religion of Islām. Therefore, the implications of being a Muslim and the implications of citizenship are not the same. The kind of logical fallacy in which one equates between the two unequals indicates an error in the understanding of the proper definition of religion, specifically the nature of the religion of Islām. On the nature of religion as being more than just belief in the form of affirmation in the heart and utterance on the tongue, but followed by submission in the way prescribed and approved by God. The religion of Islām requires both belief (imān) and submission (islām) from its believers. Both are not identical, but they are mutually inseparable and indispensable, which means that one cannot do without the other (Qur'ān, 49:14). Thus, belief here is not in the sense we mean is to have "faith" as understood in English, but in the sense that it involves becoming true to the trust by which God has confided in on so it becomes verification (shahādah) by deeds in accordance to what is known to be the truth. Imān consists of three components; assent by the heart, verbal declaration and action in accordance with the principles of Islām (taṣdīq bi'l-qalb wa iqrar bi'l-lisān wa'l-'amal bi'l-arkān). Therefore, it is misleading to say that all that is demanded from a Muslim is simply for him to claim that he has strong belief, as though strong belief alone is sufficient to secure his commitment to the religion. Indeed, there has been a lot of misunderstanding over this particular point about the importance of belief, especially with regards to religion in general and Islām in particular. No doubt belief is important insofar as it serves as the starting point of any purposive action. But it does not follow that belief alone is enough. It is presumptuous to believe that one can simply will to be good, therefore one is good, and consequently, one ought to be recognised by others as being good. To take a simple example, if a person were to make a claim that he or she loves the mother, if his or her actions are not in conformity with that claim, then the claim is disproved. Furthermore, it is not enough for that person to simply set an intention that "I love my mother" if that is not followed up by correct and proper words or actions that verifies that belief. Rather, belief — as important as it is — is not a substitute for words and actions that conform and make manifest that belief. To put it simply, it is through correct action that one's belief is verified, actualised and acknowledged. Islam and other religions compared in terms of the Aqīdah and Sharīʿah. A clear and correct definition of religion is central to the resolution of this debate. Following upon what has been said about the concept of religion as understood and practiced in Islam, we may now proceed to further elaborate on this matter. The teachings of Islam do not accept other religions as being the same and equal to it and the Muslims do not have the authority to acknowledge other belief systems as such. Lest Muslims be accused of being exclusivists, we reply that the non-Muslims should not worry about the fact that the only religion accepted in the sight of God is Islam (Qur'ān, 3:19) since to believe in the Holy Qur'ān is not a basic tenet in their belief systems. Nevertheless, if one recognizes and accepts the argument in the Holy Qur'ān to be rationally sound and true, then one should not reject its definition and conception of religion. In Islām, "al-dīn" is understood as the proper and correct term to portray the definition and conception of religion. Since it has been proven that the Qur'anic language, with its systematic root words, is scientific in nature, one can determine the meaning of this particular word by analyzing its semantic field. One of the manifestation of the root word of "al-dīn" is "madīnah". For Muslim, "madīnah" has a profound epistemological role in the belief and practice of religion. It is the period when the belief of the religion of Islām (aqīdah) was actualized by the Holy Prophet Muhammad (upon him be peace!) who is the final Messenger of God for mankind. What was actualized during the time of Holy Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings of God be upon him) constitutes the reality of religion (sharīʿah). What does compulsion and coercion mean? The Holy Qur'an enjoins the Muslims to invite others to the path of Islām with wisdom and good instruction, and if there arises an argument, the Muslims should argue with them in the best way or manner (Qur'ān: 16:125). "Let there be no compulsion in religion: Truth stands out clear from Error: whoever rejects evil and believes in Allah has grasped the most trustworthy handhold, that never breaks. And Allah hears and knows all things." [Qur'ān: 2:256] Since the verse above was revealed to the Holy Prophet (peace and blessings of God be upon him), who himself is first and foremost a Muslim, it is only fitting that the way we look at the issue of compulsion in religion must be within the ambit of the worldview of Islām. In Islām, religion is an important matter because it is reflection of the Truth. From the authoritative exegesis of Prophet Muhammad's Companion - Ibn ʿAbbās, as collected by al-Fīrūzabādī (1329–1414) the phrase "there is no compulsion in religion" is understood to be referring upon people of the Book (Christians and Jews) and the Magians after the Arabs submitted themselves into Islām. The scholars of tafsīr clearly indicated that it is directed to non-Muslims and not Muslims as claimed by those who condone apostasy among Muslims. These views have found resonance in many authoritative tafāsīr and it has never been grossly misinterpreted in the way that is being peddled by certain groups – the likes of Islamic Renaissance Front (IRF) and Sisters in Islam (SIS) – to suit their fanciful slogans of enlightenment and reason. Referring to the verse 256 in chapter 2 of the Qurʾān, the Muslim scholar and the celebrated author of Tadabbur-e-Qurʾān ("Pondering over the Qurʾān"), Shāykh Amīn Aḥsan Iṣlāḥī (1904-1997), was fully aware of the tendency for confused Muslim throughout the ages of using the notion of "there is no compulsion in religion" in making the religion of Islām conforms to their fancy whims and desires, and said: "Some people unfortunately take this verse away from this sense and try to use it for rejecting all legal constraints. They argue that since there is no compulsion in Islām, any attempts to invoke punishments for certain acts are invalid in Islām and are, moreover, mere fabrications on the part of 'mullahs' (note: Muslim scholar title that is widely used in India and Pakistan). If this line of argument is accepted as valid, it would mean that the Islamic Sharīʿah (i.e. Law) is without any prescribed punishments and penalties and that it allows people to behave and act as they please without imposing any restrains on them." What this clearly demonstrates is the ready awareness amongst the learned scholars of Islam regarding the susceptibility of this particular Qur'ānic verse to misrepresentation and misinterpretation in the hands of those who possess neither the prerequisite knowledge nor the proper training that befits a true scholar. It may also be added that this particular verse has barred the Muslim from committing transgressions and atrocities from committing tyrannical religious persecution and forced conversion that stain the history of Europe, the likes of the Spanish Inquisition which in the course of 100 years resulted in the expulsion, forced conversion and killing of over 500,000 Muslims. Indeed, it is most peculiar while Muslim pundits especially in IRF and SIS prefer to chastise people for not looking at the context of the verse but in this case, it is they who remain blind to the context. If we allow the promissory note for such literal interpretation of the verse devoid of scholarly consensus and right guidance, then there would be nothing left to prevent the likes of fanatics, demagogues and even militant extremists from appropriating Islām in order to justify atrocities and perpetuate even further injustices. Rather, such methodology of blind interpretation is characteristic of the Wahhabi ideology that has produced extremists in the past. All of us should heed well the warning by the Holy Prophet which can be found in the Six Books of authentic traditions (Sunan Sittah) of the danger of spiritual and intellectual blindness: "A people will come out at the end of times, immature, foolish and corrupt. They will hold the discourse of the best of creation and recite the Qur'ān, but it will not go past their throats. They will pass through religion the way an arrow passes through its quarry." Those who argue along the lines of half-baked understanding of the Qur'ānic verse often do not even bother to read the second part of the verse that makes clear the distinction between Truth and error. There is no sense in holding on to that verse if this distinction is only mentioned in briefly or outrightly dismissed without equally serious consideration. The religion of Islām makes clear its claim to Truth, and this is why its content is cognitive to the human mind. If this is not granted, then the Qur'ān which is meant for guidance for mankind becomes entirely pointless, just as it is pointless for a someone, after having been forewarned of a burning house acknowledges the guidance given but proceeds headlong to enter it anyway - that is just sheer stupidity on that person's part. Hence, change of religion is neither similar to change of clothes nor the change in appetite for certain foods. A Muslim begins his religious life with the firm certainty with regards to the truth of his religion as revealed in the Qur'ān. Consequently, it follows that the act of choosing falsehood after having been acquainted with truth and living with the truth is certainly something unreasonable and cannot be made reasonable. Anyone who makes conscious decision to leave the religion WILL leave the religion; yet the onus falls on the people who are in collusion in helping him or her leave the religion, without giving us the chance to look at the reasons for leaving in the first place, which is mainly rooted in misunderstandings and ignorance of the religion altogether. Due to the fact that imān also depends on the Muslim's actions in accordance to the principles and the truth of Islām, therefore it is not correct to assert that one's own aqīdah remains intact after having consented to or worse, having participated in securing the apostasy of another Muslim. Freedom as understood in Islam - is there such thing as the freedom to do wrong? Islām conceives freedom as "ikhtiyar", which stems from the word "khayr", meaning "good", implying true freedom is choosing the good instead of the bad, the better over the worse or the best between two alternatives. A person who is presented with a choice between what is good and what is bad and proceeds to choose the bad is not exercising real freedom. In truth, the person is trapped within his own ignorance, thus unable to make the right choice in choosing for the better, and in doing so, has committed a grave injustice to his or her own self and others. God's prohibition to Adam (upon be him be peace) not to approach the forbidden tree only makes sense if he possesses the capability to do so in the first place, which he clearly demonstrated. Thus, it is wrong to say that Adam was given the choice to sin. Similarly, God's prohibitions to man only makes sense if man has the capability to do so in the first place, again, which he clearly demonstrated in the course of history. It would make no sense to issue a prohibition against flying to say, a cat, knowing full well that a cat has not the capability to fly. Therefore the argument saying that God gives man the freedom to commit sin or to change religion is not only fallacious, but also absurd. Just to tie in the knot, within the same sūrah, we are told that Adam after having realized his mistake, repented to God and He accepted it (Qur'ān, 2:37). On action and lawful enforcement - the necessity of action - double standards between political action and intellectual in-action - a perverse notion of power. The according of special position to Islām in the Federal Constitution reflects the worldview of Islām that was present in the minds of people who drafted it. In accordance with the reality that Islām as not merely an official religion but the religion of the Federation -- for the Muslim it is akin to a person who has witnessed (shahādah) and professed the truth of Islām -- no one can claim his Islām, as an ideal, is perfect, rather it is submission (aslama) that must be continuously implemented from time to time in order to grow in the certainty of faith - admittedly as human beings we have our our falling short of performing our religious duties but there is always room for improvement. There is no denying that it is of utmost importance for Muslims to reflect the highest of morals and virtues of Islām in their words and actions; this is emphasized numerous times in the the Qur'ān without the needing the cries of religious modernists as though it was only now realized by the Muslim community. What is more important is our attitude upon finding out that the reality of Islām has been misinterpreted or distorted by people whose knowledge of religion does not come to the level that qualifies them to speak on Islām; is it reasonable to allow these misunderstanding and confusion run rampant without being admonished and refuted by those who are truly qualified? Indeed, courage is not merely proven just by being violent or contentious. However, courage should not be reduced to being overly gentle and apologetic, moreover when ignorance has become rampant. Courage in that situation requires firmness that is based on true knowledge. One can contemplate on the lines by Yeat:
"Turning and turning in the widening gyre The falcon cannot hear the falconer; Things fall apart; the centre cannot hold; Mere anarchy is loosed upon the world, The blood-dimmed tide is loosed, and everywhere The ceremony of innocence is drowned; The best lack all conviction, while the worst Are full of passionate intensity."
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| Posted: 10 Nov 2012 08:15 PM PST
What we 'see' today, therefore, are the creation of painters of 500-600 years ago who had a fertile mind and an unbridled imagination. They imagined all this in their brain and then transferred their thoughts to canvas and/or walls and ceilings. NO HOLDS BARRED Raja Petra Kamarudin You have probably read the news of the 'appearance' of the Virgin Mary at the Sime Darby Medical Centre in Subang Jaya a few days ago. I find it quite amusing that Christians all over the world have 'seen' Jesus Christ and/or his mother 'appear' from time to time. Actually, until about 500-600 years ago, Christians had no notion of what Jesus or Mary looked like. Then, during the Early Renaissance period in France from 1385-1520 and the High Renaissance period in Italy from 1475-1525, Christians began to visualise what they could not visualise before that. The people who can be attributed (or blamed) for this would be the Renaissance painters such as Leonardo di ser Piero da Vinci, Michelangelo di Lodovico Buonarroti Simoni, Hieronymus Bosch, Jacobus de Voragine, etc. (about 70-80 in all from all over Europe). Some of their famous paintings are The Last Supper by Leonardo da Vinci, Lamentation of Christ by Mantegna, Sistine Chapel ceiling by Michelangelo, The Descent from the Cross by Rogier van der Weyden, Flagellation of Christ by Piero della Francesca, Isenheim Altarpiece by Matthias Grünewald, Melun Diptych (Virgin and Child Surrounded by Angels) by Jean Fouquet, and so on. Basically, these painters of 500-600 years ago gave Christendom a visualisation of what God, Jesus, Mary, Satan, the Angels, etc., looked like. Before that there was no visualisation of what could be considered 'divine beings'. What we 'see' today, therefore, are the creation of painters of 500-600 years ago who had a fertile mind and an unbridled imagination. They imagined all this in their brain and then transferred their thoughts to canvas and/or walls and ceilings. Today, what we 'see' is what those people of 500-600 years ago 'saw'. But did they actually see all this or was this merely a figment of their imagination? I suppose my 'image' of Prophet Muhammad, King Arthur, Merlin the Magician, Robin Hood, etc., would be as accurate as those Renaissance painters of 500-600 years ago. If I was a painter (and I am not) and I was commissioned by the church to paint the walls and ceilings of cathedrals and churches, I would probably use the images below as my guide. The Virgin Mary would look like a woman from her region and not like a Hollywood actress while Jesus would not be a tall, handsome, blue-eyed, blonde man but someone like Yasser Arafat, as he would most likely have looked like. The mind is a very powerful thing and you can certainly be made to see what does not exist if you can condition the mind with centuries of brainwashing. I wonder how many of those painters were actually atheists who did not believe in God. Yet they could influence us into seeing what they themselves did not believe in. ********************************************* Virgin Mary image draws Catholics to hospital (The Malaysian Insider) - Catholic Malaysians have been flocking to the Sime Darby Medical Centre in Subang Jaya to catch a glimpse of an image that has appeared on one of its windows said to resemble the image of the Virgin Mary, The Sunday Star reported today. The mysterious image of the figure revered by Catholics who believe Mary to be the mother of Jesus Christ was reported to have been spotted a few days ago on a window pane at the hospital. The image has been captured on camera and spread on Facebook. Yesterday, a group largely composed of Catholics visited the medical centre and sung hymns and prayed before the image. "It is so wonderful that our Mother has come to us in a hospital, where many of the sick are crying out for her help," Janet Tong, 45, told the English-language newspaper. Sheree Rao, a businessman who was present at the hospital, reportedly said the image could not be seen from the inside of the window. "I touched the glass, thinking it could be paint or something else. But there was nothing,'' the 21-year-old was reported as saying. A 20-year-old student, Nicole Jo Pereira, said she thinks it's a sign for people to practise good deeds. The hospital authorities and the editor of the The Herald, Malaysia's sole Catholic newspaper have declined to give their comments, The Sunday Star reported. ********************************************* Awestruck by Virgin Mary image (The Star) - An image of what seems to be the Blessed Virgin Mary on a window at the Sime Darby Medical Centre (SDMC) here is drawing crowds. A large group of people, mostly Catholics, gathered below the area at the new wing of the hospital yesterday, lighting candles, singing hymns and reciting prayers. Traffic was heavy around the vicinity, with even tourist buses pulling up by the roadside. Secretary Janet Tong, 45, described the apparition as "amazing". "It is so wonderful that our Mother has come to us in a hospital, where many of the sick are crying out for her help," she said. Several claimed the colour and position of the image also changed. Businessman Sheree Rao, 21, who went up inside to get a close look at the window, said the image was only visible from the outside. "I touched the glass, thinking it could be paint or something else. But there was nothing,'' he added. Student Nicole Jo Pereira, 20, said she believed the image was a call for people to do good deeds. Teacher Kenneth Fong, 27, said he was sure of an image on the window. "But whether it's from God, I don't know." Photographs of the image, believed to have appeared several days ago, have gone viral on Facebook. Access to the window from inside the building has been restricted by the hospital. A hospital official declined to comment on the matter. Catholic newsletter The Herald editor Rev Father Lawrence Andrew said the Catholic Church would withhold official comment until the image had been tested and verified by theologians and church authorities. Catholics believe that Mary, as mother of Jesus Christ, is the Mother of God. *********************************************
Did the Virgin Mary look like the above or the below?
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Yasser Arafat in the 1940s (above) and later in life (below)
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| Posted: 10 Nov 2012 07:29 PM PST
Denying that Najib has lost confidence in MIC, Palanivel claims that the people are returning to MIC's fold. Leven Woon, FMT MIC president G Palanivel was today left unimpressed that Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak has bypassed his party to approach harsh government critic Hindraf on a talk of issues plaguing the Indian community. He also shunned the idea that such talk was a sign of the premier's deteriorating confidence on MIC. "Let it be within the PM and Hindraf. I don't worry about (PM's) confidence, MIC's support has increased a lot among the public. "I don't worry what the Hindraf and PM are talking about. I am not going to interfere," he said when met by reporters after a Deepavali celebration here today. Palanivel's comment came amid an announcement made by Minister of Prime Minister Department Nazri Abdul Aziz on Wednesday that Najib has invited Hindraf and other Indian groups for a discussion. Yesterday, Hindraf cast aspersions on the sincerity of Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak's invitation, saying that it could be related to the general election. However it was willing to talk to the government for the sake of the Indian community. Keeping mum on Batu Caves project Meanwhile, the MIC president dodged questions on the 29-storey condominium project near Batu Caves Hindu temple, two weeks after Pakatan Rakyat leaders showed evidence that MIC councillors were involved in approving the project in 2007.
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| Gejala Melayu murtad sangat mengkhuatirkan Posted: 10 Nov 2012 07:20 PM PST
"Kita boleh menegaskan bahawa orang Islam tidak boleh murtad mengikut hukum Islam tanpa dikenakan hukuman mengikut syariat Islam akan tetapi untuk selesa dengan hanya takrifan Perlembagaan mengenai definisi orang Melayu adalah berugama Islam adalah dangkal," kata Setiausaha Agung Mapim, Mohd Azmi Abdul Hamid. (Harakah) - Sepatutnya kedudukan Islam di kalangan orang Melayu, walaupun mempunyai takrif yang tersendiri di dalam Perlembagaan Persekutuan namun ia tidak boleh memberi jaminan bahawa orang Melayu secara hakikatnya boleh kekal keislamannya. Kenyataan penuh seperti di bawah. Majlis Perundingan Pertubuhan Islam Malaysia (Mapim) kesal dengan tabiat meraih 'kesempatan politik' (political mileage) dalam budaya politik di Malaysia. Dalam hampir semua tutur kata, ahli politik mengambil kesempatan untuk menyerang musuh politik walaupun maklumat yang sahih belum lagi diperolehi. Tidak dapat dinafikan betapa gejala orang Melayu sudah longgar pegangannya kepada Islam kini sangat mengkhuatirkan. Secara umum gejala murtad bukan suatu perkara yang dapat dinafikan sama ada diisytiharkan secara rasmi atau tidak.
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| Posted: 10 Nov 2012 06:30 PM PST
The Malays must wake up konon! Podah! Everything wrong with Malaysia is the fault of the Malays. The non-Malays are mere victims. You buggers deserve to be victims and I hope you will remain victims for another 100 years for your sin of being traitors to the cause back in the 1980s that allowed the country to decline to its present level and for allowing Umno to rule for 55 years. THE CORRIDORS OF POWER Raja Petra Kamarudin I have not written anything over the last two days because Mat Sabu and another PAS leader from Melaka were visiting me in Manchester so I was quite tied up. I must admit that we had a most interesting two days discussing current issues affecting Malaysia, in particular about politics and matters related to politics. Anyhow, all I can say is that Mat Sabu and I share the same views on practically most of the issues. I don't think I need to go into details about what we spoke, though, or else this article is going to run into ten pages. Furthermore, my opinions have already been clearly expressed in the numerous articles I have written over these last 20 years or so since I started writing about politics back in the early 1990s. What I want to address today is the 'favourite' comment many readers have posted in Malaysia Today over the last four years since 2008. And this comment is: the non-Malays have already woken up. When are the Malays going to wake up? These readers are, of course, referring to the March 2008 'Tsunami' where 50% of the Malays voted opposition while the figure for the Chinese and Indians was much higher -- an estimated 70% plus and 80% plus respectively. Many argue that in the coming general it is going to be higher for the Chinese -- maybe more than 80% -- while for the Malays it may remain at 50% or even decline to below 50%. They do not talk too much about the Indians, though, but it is estimated that this time around the Indian vote for the opposition may fall to just 50% or less. It is puzzling as to why you say it is the Malays who need to wake up. The Malays had already woken up back in the late 1980s. And that was 25 years ago. When the Registrar of Societies deregistered Umno in 1988 and two new Malay parties were formed in its place -- Umno Baru and Semangat 46 -- the Malays became divided and have remained divided ever since. In the 1990 General Election two years later, Kelantan fell to the opposition and has remained opposition ever since. The PAS-Semangat 46 coalition called APU (Angkatan Perpaduan Ummah) also captured many seats in Terengganu, although not enough to take the state. Unfortunately, the other two coalitions that Semangat 46 had with the non-Malay political parties -- with DAP on the West Coast (called Gagasan Rakyat) and with PBS in Sabah -- did not do as well as APU. While the Malays voted opposition, the non-Malays on the West Coast and those in East Malaysia refused to do the same. Hence the opposition dream of kicking out Umno and Barisan Nasional and of taking power at federal level was shattered. In the end it became a Malay dream and not a Malaysian dream. Since Umno had been deregistered (Umno no longer existed), MCA had to take over the leadership of Barisan Nasional and the MCA President took over as the Chairman of Barisan Nasional. By right, although not by law, Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad, who was now 'partyless' and an independent Member of Parliament should have resigned as the Prime Minister and the MCA President, who was now the Chairman of Barisan Nasional, should have taken over as the new Prime Minister. But Barisan Nasional (meaning the non-Malays) did not do this. They allowed Dr Mahathir, a man without a party and hence with no majority in Parliament, to remain as Prime Minister. In that sense, even Ibrahim Ali or Zul Nordin (who both also have no party) can become the Prime Minister of Malaysia -- going by what they did 25 years ago in the late 1980s. We Malays were very disappointed with the non-Malays in both West and East Malaysia. Dr Mahathir should have been kicked out. Umno no longer existed and Dr Mahathir was no longer the leader of the largest party in Parliament. Dr Mahathir was now merely a calun bebas. Why was he still the Prime Minister? And why were the non-Malays still retaining him as Prime Minister when the majority of the Malays wanted him out. Umno Baru was then formed. Technically, however, it was still an independent party and not a member of Barisan Nasional. Barisan Nasional then called for an emergency meeting, chaired by the President of MCA. No one from Umno (Baru) attended the meeting. At this emergency meeting, it was UNANIMOUSLY agreed (with not a single dissenting voice) that Umno Baru be admitted as a member of Barisan Nasional (not READMITTED but ADMITTED, because Umno no longer existed and Umno Baru was a brand new party). It was also UNANIMOUSLY agreed (with not a single dissenting voice) that Dr Mahathir be invited to take over as the new Chairman of Barisan Nasional. I was there that day (standing outside the meeting room, of course, since I was not a leader of Barisan Nasional and hence could not be inside the meeting room). We were anxiously expecting at least one member of Barisan Nasional to vote against admitting a 'new party' into Barisan Nasional -- and hence Dr Mahathir would have to resign as the Prime Minister and the new Chairman of Barisan Nasional, who was also the President of MCA, would take over as Prime Minister. I was very angry that day. The Malays had made their move. We were going to be rid of Umno and Dr Mahathir. But the non-Malays sold us out. The non-Malays betrayed us. From that day on we realised that the non-Malays cannot be trusted to change the country. We Malays are on our own and will have to do it ourselves. Ten years later, we had our second chance. This time it was because of the conflict between Anwar Ibrahim and Dr Mahathir. In the 1999 General Election we did better than in the 1990 General Election. Not only did the opposition retain Kelantan (without the help of Semangat 46 this time, mind you, since that party had closed down and most of its members had rejoined Umno) but it also won Terengganu after 25 years of trying (since 1974). Furthermore, the opposition won 8 out of the 15 Parliament seats in Kedah (more than half) plus it managed to deny Barisan Nasional its two-thirds majority in the Kedah State Assembly (which happened exactly one year later in the Lunas by-election). That was a new landmark for the opposition. Unfortunately, all this happened in the Malay heartland of Kelantan, Terengganu and Kedah. In those constituencies where the Malays do not represent 90% or more of the voters, Barisan Nasional still ruled. In fact, any constituency where the Malay voters are less than 80% it was quite impossible for the opposition to win. No doubt, in constituencies where the voters are predominantly Chinese and the candidate is a Chinese from DAP, then there is a strong possibility that DAP can win that seat. But this was the exception rather than the rule -- sometimes even the top guns of DAP suffered defeat because the Chinese voters rejected them. In 2008 that all changed, of course. But whether this change is permanent or temporary is left to be seen -- and we shall know soon, come the next general election. But what perturbs me is that the Malays have been struggling to see change for about 25 years now. But we failed to see change because of the recalcitrant Chinese and Indians, and those from East Malaysia. No doubt, in 2008, more than half the Chinese and Indians from West Malaysia voted opposition while only 50% of the Malays did so. But the Malays have been divided between Barisan Nasional and the opposition since the 1980s. The Chinese and Indians from West Malaysia have only just woken up very recently (while those from East Malaysia are still sleeping). Hence I can't understand why the Chinese (and some Indians) keep asking the Malays to wake up. Can't they understand that the Malays already woke up a long time ago? The Chinese and Indians (and even then only those from West Malaysia, mind you) woke up only very recently. If they had woken up 25 years ago like the Malays had, Dr Mahathir would have ruled Malaysia for only 7 years and not 22 years and Umno would have been in power for only 30 years and not 55 years. So what's all this nonsense about 'ABU' and '55 years is enough' and 'the Malays must wake up' all that shit? We have seen 55 years of Umno rule and we need an ABU movement because of the treacherous Chinese and Indians from West Malaysia and those non-Malays from East Malaysia. And, today, you blame the Malays and scream that it is time that the Malay woke up. What crap is this? And stop giving the excuse that the non-Malays had no choice. Stop saying that back in the late 1980s if MCA had refused to allow Umno Baru to become a member of Barisan Nasional and had refused to allow Dr Mahathir to remain as Prime Minister the army would have stepped in -- hence the Chinese and Indians and those from East Malaysia were forced to do what they did. Are you saying that the army has already been disbanded? Are you saying that only in the late 1980s Malaysia had an army and today we no longer have an army? That is utter bullshit and a bloody lame excuse. If you could not change the government in the 1980s because of the army then what makes you think you can change the government today when we still have an army? Would you accept the excuse that the Malays have no choice but to vote Umno because if Pakatan Rakyat takes over then apostasy would be allowed and Muslims will leave Islam in droves to become Christians? I think this is as legitimate an excuse as the one that the non-Malays are giving as to why they did what they did 25 years ago back in the late 1980s. The Malays must wake up konon! Podah! Everything wrong with Malaysia is the fault of the Malays. The non-Malays are mere victims. You buggers deserve to be victims and I hope you will remain victims for another 100 years for your sin of being traitors to the cause back in the 1980s that allowed the country to decline to its present level and for allowing Umno to rule for 55 years. Let me assure you I have already woken up. 35 years ago back in the late 1970s I woke up to the evils of the government and 25 years ago back in the late 1980s I woke up to the treachery of the non-Malays who propped up Umno and kept them in power. So no need to ask me to wake up! Today I have woken up even more. I have woken up to the hypocrisy of the non-Malays who 'created' Umno and then now blame the Malays for what Umno does. |
| Posted: 10 Nov 2012 04:37 PM PST
WORRYING STATEMENT: There is nothing courageous or inspiring in espousing the merits of religious freedom for Muslims in the context of Malaysia Already, PKR -- the smallest party in Pakatan Rakyat -- is caught in a cross-fire between Parti Islam se-Malaysia (Pas) and the Democratic Action Party (DAP) over conflicting ideologies. |
| Posted: 10 Nov 2012 04:23 PM PST
Religion and politics — that's a potent mix guaranteed to be explosive. Nurul Izzah's slip has been seized on by Umno because the fight in the polls is essentially over the majority Malay votes, especially in the rural constituencies which are heavily in favour of the ruling party. Of the 222 parliamentary seats, only about 45 are Chinese-majority in urban areas and there is not a single seat with an Indian majority. Wong Chun Wai, The Star IN the run-up to the general election, holding forums on political issues, even in churches, has become fairly common. While most churches would be careful about bringing politicians into a house of worship to talk politics, there are some that are prepared to organise or at least play host to such events. Last Saturday, the Oriental Hearts and Mind Study Institute (OHMSI) conducted a talk on "Islamic State: Which Version? Whose Responsibility?" with the keynote address by Dr Ahmad Farouk Musa, director of the Islamic Renaissance Front. The forum was held at a church in Subang. But the person who captured the headlines was PKR deputy president Nurul Izzah Anwar who was one of the moderators. In response to a question from the floor, she found herself caught in a controversy over whether Malays have a right to choose their religion. She was speaking to a largely urban non-Malay audience and, as seen in a video recording of the event that has now gone viral, she was greeted with loud applause. The feisty politician has since denied making any statement suggesting that there should be no compulsion on Malays to be Muslims. But she earned a royal rebuke from the Sultan of Selangor and she has quickly blamed Utusan Malaysia for allegedly distorting and twisting her reply to a member of the audience. To make things more complicated, the person who posed the question to Nurul Izzah has now expressed her disappointment over the latter's about turn on the issue. Lawyer Siti Zabedah Kasim was quoted as saying by news portal Free Malaysia Today that "I believe Nurul Izzah was just trying to impress the people. She didn't think of the consequences." For many non-Muslims, especially those living in urban areas, the issue was probably dismissed as a non-starter and seen as another political move to discredit Nurul Izzah. But for conservative Muslims in the rural areas, it would be unthinkable and unacceptable. Luckily for Nurul Izzah, the language used at the forum was English and the video that's currently going around does not have Bahasa Malaysia subtitles, thus making the damage less severe – for now. But for Nurul Izzah to deny it vehemently now would suggest that she has woken up to the grave political consequences of what she has done. If there was no impact, she would have just shrugged it off. She now wants to get out of this tricky spot. The easy part is to blame Utusan Malaysia, which is well known for its nationalist slant, but the pro-Pakatan Rakyat news portal Malaysiakini also carried the same story using the same angle on Nov 3. Nurul Izzah has also put PAS in a corner. On Friday, PAS spiritual adviser Datuk Nik Abdul Aziz Nik Mat said that if Nurul Izzah had indeed made her controversial statement on religious freedom, "then something is not right" while PAS president Datuk Seri Hadi Awang wanted to hear from her. Their only purported concerns, or a way out, seem to be that they have doubts over the accuracy of reporting by the media. DAP strongman Ngeh Koo Ham tweeted last week in support of Nurul Izzah, quoting Article 11 of the Federal Constitution which states that every person has the right to profess and to practise his or her religion. But Ngeh, a lawyer, did not say it has to be read with other applicable laws. There are laws restricting the propagation of other religions to Muslims. Article 160 of the Federal Constitution, for example, is clear that all ethnic Malays are Muslims. A Malay is defined as someone who professes to be a Muslim, habitually speaks the Malay language and adheres to Malay customs. The fact remains that the majority of Malays want this to remain as law and as practice and convention. Nurul Izzah's slip has been seized on by Umno because the fight in the polls is essentially over the majority Malay votes, especially in the rural constituencies which are heavily in favour of the ruling party. Of the 222 parliamentary seats, only about 45 are Chinese-majority in urban areas and there is not a single seat with an Indian majority. Nurul Izzah's case will also have a deep impact in PAS where the divide between those regarded as sympathetic to Anwar and the more orthodox ulamas is concerned. Former deputy president Nasharuddin Mat Isa, for example, is solidly in the Islamist party despite his overtures to Umno. He has regularly spoken up against the DAP, a PAS ally, but remains untouched because he is said to be protected by the anti-Anwar forces in the party. The church in Subang has found itself in the spotlight for hosting the forum. Recently, another church which hosted a forum on the elections found its speakers and the media squabbling over the accuracy of some negative remarks made on Pakatan Rakyat. There's a lesson here – keep religion out of politics. But as long as there are politicians masquerading as theologians of their respective faiths, no one will take this advice kindly.
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| Now it’s time for Felda folk’s children to enjoy windfall Posted: 10 Nov 2012 04:08 PM PST
(The Star) - After their parents' windfall earlier this year, it is the second generation of Felda settlers who are now at the "receiving end". Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak yesterday handed out RM563mil to 112,635 Felda households, with the funds specifically targeted at the younger generation. Each family received RM5,000. The handout was the third and final instalment that the Prime Minister had promised Felda settlers in recognition of their 56 years of toil. On May 8, Najib announced a windfall of RM15,000 for each first-generation settler's family at 317 Felda schemes nationwide. The first RM5,000 was paid to the head of the households and the second instalment to the wives. "The Barisan Nasional government has never broken a promise; Janji ditepati' (Keeping our promises) is not merely a slogan," Najib told 12,000 settlers at the Felda New Generation gathering at Universiti Teknologi Mara. Najib said the windfall was possible due to the successful listing of Felda Global Ventures Holdings (FGVH), which the Opposition had tried to block. "They only know how to condemn, incite and make empty promises," said Najib. "They do not seek anything beneficial, but want to ruin our good efforts. Do not dream of getting RM15,000 (from the Opposition)," he added. Also present were Deputy Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Datuk Ahmad Maslan and Felda group chairman Tan Sri Mohd Isa Samad. Isa said the windfall was a short-term reward for the settlers, adding that a trust fund had been set up for the long term. "This durian runtuh (windfall) isn't going to be an annual occurrence. "If that was the case, it would be akin to kutip durian (harvesting)," he added. Felda also showcased new housing designs for settlers which included a RM70,000 bungalow that could be completed in a week. Isa said Felda planned to build 4,000 houses each year.
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| Do you have licence from God to lord over us, Nash? Posted: 10 Nov 2012 03:59 PM PST
The People's Parliament "And the LORD said unto Moses, See, I have made thee a god to Pharaoh: and Aaron thy brother shall be thy prophet" – The Book of Exodus, Chapter 7, verse 1, The Holy Bible. Now, you can read this verse in many ways. Literally, too, if you wished, and no one could fault you if you imagined Moses walking up to Pharaoh and saying, "I am your Lord. Do as I bid you do". I had wanted to stay away from this whole apostasy controversy sparked off by Nurul's statements at a recent forum as we have bigger and more important battles to fight, but Malaysiakini's report today really pissed me off.
This UMNO wolf in PAS sheepskin contends that what Nurul said about there being ' "no compulsion in religion" was tantamount to giving religious freedom to Malay Muslims as the verse which she quoted can only be applied to non-Muslims'. The verse can only be applied to non-Muslims? Let's look at the verse again. "There shall be no compulsion in religion. The right course has become clear from the wrong. So whoever disbelieves in idols and believes in God has grasped the most trustworthy handhold with no break in it. And God is Hearing and Knowing" – Chapter 2 verse 256, Holy Qur'an. Now. like the verse in Exodus, you can read this in many ways, too, but if you're not going to do a literal read, Nash, and read into it something that's not there, you, oh scholarly one, ought to be mindful of this verse. "So woe to those who write with their own hands, then say, "This is from God ," in order to exchange it for a small price. Woe to them for what their hands have written and woe to them for what they earn" – Chapter 2 verse 79, Holy Qur'an. Whilst we're on the scriptures, oh scholarly one, since you say Muslims have no choice, pray tell us, who was God addressing in the following verses, marked in red? "And whoever desires other than Islam as religion, never will it be accepted from him, and he, in the Hereafter, will be among the losers. How shall God guide a people who disbelieved after their belief and had witnessed that the Messenger is true and clear signs had come to them? And God does not guide the wrongdoing people. For those, their recompense will be that upon them is the curse of God and the angels and the people, all together, abiding eternally therein. The punishment will not be lightened for them, nor will they be reprieved. Except for those who repent after that and correct themselves. For indeed, God is Forgiving and Merciful. Indeed, those who reject the message after their belief and then increase in disbelief – never will their feigned repentance be accepted, and they are the ones astray" – Chapter 3, verses 85 to 90, Holy Qur'an. Who, oh scholarly one, is God addressing in the words marked in red? Seems to me that God was addressing those who had believed and bore witness to the Holy Prophet (pbuh) and then were now professing unbelief. No?
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| Nong Chik: Elections after Chinese New Year Posted: 10 Nov 2012 03:53 PM PST
Nong Chik was quick to add that the date was only his forecast. Md Izwan, The Malaysian Insider The 13th general elections will be called after Chinese New Year, Datuk Raja Nong Chik Raja Zainal Abidin predicted today, because the major festivals celebrated in multicultural Malaysia would be done with by then. "We have celebrated Raya Haji, after this we will be celebrating Deepavali and Christmas. Then next year, the Chinese community will be celebrating their new year. "But let us not forget the biggest festival for the people, which is the victory for the Barisan Nasional (BN) in the most important celebration that is after the Chinese New Year," the Federal Territories Minister said after officiating the 1 Malaysia For Youth (1M4U) launch here this afternoon. The Lunar New Year festival is expected to fall on February 10 next year. The Chinese community typically celebrate it for 15 days. However, Nong Chik was quick to add that the date was only his forecast and the decision to call for elections was with Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak.
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| Pemimpin-pemimpin politik jangan kiasu Posted: 10 Nov 2012 03:03 PM PST
Tiada gunanya jika pemimpin-pemimpin politik kita sering bercakap mengenai budaya politik baru namun tidak disusuli dengan tindakan konkrit. Elak menjadi pemimpin yang cakap tak serupa bikin dan kiasu. Markus Lim, The Malaysian Insider Tempoh empat tahun dalam dunia politik nampaknya begitu lama dan sesuatu yang cukup memeritkan. Apa tidaknya, tidak pernah satu hari sejak berakhirnya Pilihan Raya Umum ke-12, tidak kedengaran perbalahan politik antara dua pihak yang bertelagah. Rakyat pula mengaru-garu kepala dan tertanya-tanya – apa sudah jadi dengan wakil rakyat yang dipilih mereka? Mengapa wakil-wakil rakyat yang dipilih ini boleh berkelakuan sedemikian? Apakah mereka sudah lupa bahawa kuasa dan jawatan yang disandangnya ketika ini hanya bersifat sementara? Suara rakyat yang meminta wakil rakyat melihat ke hadapan tenggelam timbul dan bagaikan tidak diendahkan. Paling mendukacitakan, perbalahan dan perang lidah antara pihak pemerintah dan pembangkang belum menunjukkan tanda-tanda akan reda. Sebaliknya, keadaan bertambah buruk. Di satu pihak, pelbagai isu dibangkitkan dengan harapan seteru mereka akan memberi maklum balas. Di satu pihak lagi pula, mereka hanya mampu bertahan dan menangkis tohmahan demi tohmahan. Kedua-dua pihak seolah-olah tidak bersedia menerima kehadiran sesama mereka. Matlamat utama ialah kemenangan di satu pihak manakala kekalahan di pihak lawan. Apa yang diamalkan itu adalah sesuatu yang lumrah dalam dunia politik. Isu kelangsungan adalah segala-galanya dalam dunia politik. Siapa lebih kuat, dialah yang berkuasa! Namun demikian, perlukah mereka sampai ke tahap sedemikian? Lihat sahajalah kepada tindak-tanduk Presiden Barack Obama dan pemimpin parti Republikan, Mitt Romney yang berentap dalam pilihan raya presiden baru-baru ini. Mereka berdua cukup berlapang dada. Biarpun Romney tewas pada pilihan raya itu, beliau sempat mengajak kedua-dua pihak, Parti Demokrat dan Republikan untuk tidak berbalah sesama sendiri. Menurut Romney, Amerika kini berada di persimpangan dan sebarang perbalahan hanya akan merugikan kuasa besar dunia itu. Malah, beliau turut mengajak semua pihak untuk bekerjasama bagi menunaikan mandat yang telah diberikan oleh pengundi. Obama dalam ucapan kemenangannya pula berjanji akan bekerjasama dengan Romney untuk memacu Amerika ke hadapan. Kata-kata oleh Romney dan Obama itu cukup signifikan dan cukup bermakna. Mereka mempamerkan kematangan berpolitik tinggi yang wajar diteladani oleh semua pemimpin politik dunia. Keghairahan untuk merebut jawatan paling berkuasa di dunia tidak sekalipun melekakan mereka untuk berperang antara satu sama lain. Romney dan Obama mengerti bahawa agenda yang lebih penting ialah negara. Sentimen partisan yang menebal diketepikan buat seketika. Ketika kita ghairah bercakap mengenai pemimpin Amerika, bagaimana pula dengan pemimpin-pemimpin politik di Malaysia? Bersediakah mereka untuk berubah dan menjadi teladan kepada pihak lain? Mahukah mereka terus menjadi bahan gurauan? Apa manfaatnya untuk terus bertelagah? Cukuplah… Tiada gunanya jika pemimpin-pemimpin politik kita sering bercakap mengenai budaya politik baru namun tidak disusuli dengan tindakan konkrit. Elak menjadi pemimpin yang cakap tak serupa bikin dan kiasu. Budaya politik baru menuntut kesungguhan seseorang pemimpin untuk berubah, berubah ke arah kebaikan dan menjadi seorang yang lebih baik daripada sebelumnya. Kepada pemimpin politik dari parti pemerintah dan pembangkang, ayuh ketepikan perbalahan dan bekerjasama demi kebaikan negara yang kita cintai ini.
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| ‘Pemimpin Islam perlu sepakat dalam soal menjaga agama’ Posted: 10 Nov 2012 02:59 PM PST
(Bernama) - Penasihat Agama kepada Perdana Menteri Datuk Seri Dr Abdullah Md Zin berkata pemimpin Islam di negara ini perlu sepakat dalam menjaga kepentingan agama Islam tanpa mengira perbezaan fahaman politik. Katanya tindakan sesetengah pemimpin politik yang mengetepikan kepentingan agama demi kedudukan politik dan menyebabkan kecelaruan berpanjangan dalam masyarakat amat dikesalkan. "Amat dikesalkan kerana pemimpin PAS seperti Nik Aziz dan Haji Hadi tidak mahu memperbetulkan kenyataan yang dibuat Nurul Izzah dalam soalan kebebasan beragama selain turut menyokong dan mengatakan perkara tersebut tidak penting," katanya pada satu perjumpaan dengan media, di sini hari ini. Katanya sebagai Mursyidul Am PAS Datuk Nik Abdul Aziz Nik Mat jelas mengetepikan kepentingan Islam apabila menyokong Nurul Izzah sekalipun menyedari Naib Presiden Parti Keadilan Rakyat itu melakukan kesalahan besar. "Nik Aziz jika tahu perkara itu salah sepatutnya jangan keluar apa-apa pandangan dan lebih baik menjadi syaitan yang bisu daripada syaitan yang berkata-kata," katanya. Beliau turut meminta Nurul Izzah memperbetulkan kenyataannya dan meminta maaf dengan mengakui tidak arif tentang bidang agama. Pada 3 Nov lepas, portal berita Malaysiakini melaporkan Nurul Izzah yang juga Anggota Parlimen Lembah Pantai berkata rakyat tidak seharusnya dipaksa menganut agama tertentu dan perkara itu juga patut terpakai kepada orang Melayu. "Apabila anda bertanya saya, tiada paksaan dalam beragama...bagaimana seseorang itu boleh berkata, maaflah, ini (kebebasan beragama) hanya terpakai kepada orang bukan Melayu, ia sepatutnya diguna pakai secara sama rata," katanya. Beliau berkata demikian pada forum bertajuk "Negara Islam: Versi Mana; Tanggungjawab Siapa?" di Subang Jaya pada 3 Nov.
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| Pahang, Selangor PAS back asset declaration move Posted: 10 Nov 2012 02:48 PM PST
Ida Lim, The Malaysian Insider PAS Youth's idea to declare their assets gained speed today as the Islamist party chiefs in Pahang and Selangor announced today their support for the initiative—a move that is likely to increase the pressure on their Barisan Nasional (BN) foes, namely Umno, to be equally transparent. The party appears to be taking the lead in getting its candidates to reveal their assets, even as intense campaigning for the coming elections goes on, with the issue of battling corruption being a core campaign issue for political parties. Declaring Pahang PAS' support for the party's youth wing's proposal for assets declaration, Pahang commissioner Datuk Tuan Ibrahim Tuan Man (picture) said this move would help candidates in their contest against political foes that "like to hide". "PAS leaders and candidates have to be presented in a transparent and reputable way to fight opponents that like to hide. "This asset declaration gives an opportunity to the people to choose clearly and without suspicion the candidates that will represent them in DUN (state assembly) and in Parliament," Tuan Ibrahim, who is also the PAS information chief, told the party paper Harakah today. Selangor PAS chief Dr Rani Osman has also joined the asset declaration queue. "Selangor PAS' candidates for GE13 will also declare their assets to be evaluated by the people and to fight Umno," he told Harakah today. The annoucement from Pahang and Selangor comes after PAS secretary-general Datuk Mustafa Ali praised PAS Youth for the initiative, describing it as in line with the principle of transparency and resposibility as recommended by Islam. "PAS has long practised this matter internally which involves those in public office like the mentri besar and the excos. It is good for this matter if done openly," Mustafa told Harakah yesterday. PAS Youth has proposed that its executive council members declare their assets at its next assembly this week, a move that is calculated to raise its public profile and pressure its political peers to do the same in the run-up to the 13th general elections (GE13). The conservative Dewan Pemuda PAS was reported to have mooted the idea last week in what is seen as a challenge to other political parties as they seek to temper the public's image of them as radical Islamists opposed to flesh-baring foreign artistes at concerts here and promote themselves as capable progressive Muslim leaders in tune with current issues. "There's a big possibility we will have an asset declaration ceremony. At the muktamar this time. With the hope it will pave the way for all PAS leadership," the wing's secretary, Khairul Faizi Ahmad Kamil, was reported as saying by Harakah on Friday.
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| PAS Youth mulls declaring assets, upping ante on political foes Posted: 10 Nov 2012 02:32 PM PST
Debra Chong, The Malaysian Insider PAS Youth has proposed that its executive council members declare their assets at its next assembly this week, a move that is calculated to raise its public profile and pressure its political peers to do the same in the run-up to the 13th general elections (GE13). The conservative Dewan Pemuda PAS was reported to have mooted the idea last week in what is seen as a challenge to other political parties as they seek to temper the public's image of them as radical Islamists opposed to flesh-baring foreign artistes at concerts here and market themselves as capable progressive Muslim leaders in tune with current issues. "There's a big possibility we will have an asset declaration ceremony. At the muktamar this time. With the hope it will pave the way for all PAS leadership," the wing's secretary, Khairul Faizi Ahmad Kamil, was reported as saying by its party paper Harakah on Friday. Khairul Faizi reportedly said the youth wing's executive council had suggested the move even though not all of them will be nominated to contest in the GE13 in an effort to show transparency and would table the motion at the party's muktamar, or national conference that will be held over two days from November 15 to 16 at Pengkalan Chepa, Kelantan. PAS secretary-general Datuk Mustafa Ali was reported to have lauded the youth wing's initiative to declare their assets, calling it inn line with the principle of transparency and resposibility as recommended by Islam. "PAS has long practised this matter internally which involves those in public office like the mentri besar and the excos. It is good for this matter if done openly," the party senior told Harakah yesterday. In offering to declare their assets, PAS Youth will be joining its other Pakatan Rakyat (PR) opposition partners who have proven they walk their talk. Earlier this year, Penang Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng and his state executive councillors (excos) declared their assets. Lim, who is also DAP secretary-general, had pointed out that asset declarations were one of the six key "integrity measures" he had introduced in his administration of Penang, in line with its CAT (Competency, Accountability, Transparency) principles.
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| Once a Muslim, always a Muslim Posted: 10 Nov 2012 02:21 PM PST
Greg Lopez, New Mandala Dr. Marzuki Mohamed, ANU alumnus, and advisor to the Deputy Prime Minister of Malaysia recently argued that Malaysia is NOT a secular state. The timing of Dr. Marzuki's assertions of course fits a larger strategy undertaken by the ruling party: to use religion as a wedge between Muslims and non-Muslims in general, but also between the parties in the opposition coalition, especially the Islamist PAS, and the social democrats, DAP. Islam is also of course used to ensure compliance, and to stifle dissent. Having next to nothing to rely on: suffering from massive deficits on the leadership and policy front, and with an increasingly debilitating track record in the economic, social and political front, this is indeed a sound strategy as there are sufficient number of Malaysians, and especially Malaysian Muslims to fall for this – that UMNO is the protector and the guarantor of the sanctity of Islam. To paraphrase and slightly modify Samuel Johnson, "religion is indeed the last refuge of a scoundrel." Another ANU alumnus, Dr. Kikue Hamayotsu, give credence to the argument that Islam is used simply as a means to ensure the continuation of this corrupt regime. In her article, she argues that:
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| Bigots, cronies, tyrants and thugs Posted: 10 Nov 2012 02:17 PM PST
Religious bigots and feudalists, Umno and its business cronies, Malay supremacist and their secret spies and Trojan horses are all coming together. Religious bigots and feudalists, Umno and its business cronies, Malay supremacist and their secret spies and Trojan horses are all coming together. Mohd Ariff Sabri Aziz, FMT Umno is marshalling all the reactionary forces in this country to put down the majority. Religious bigots represented by the likes of Hasan Alis, Zulkifli Nordins and the racial bigots represented by the Ibrahim Alis. Their running dogs are now resorting to (i) attacks on the person, and (ii) patronising comments. A specter is indeed haunting our country — the specter of Malaysians reclaiming lost rights. All the powers of the corrupt government have entered into an unholy alliance to exorcise this specter. Religious bigots and feudalists, Umno and its business cronies, Malay supremacist and their secret spies and Trojan horses are all coming together. The specter that is coming back is the specter of Dr Mahathir Mohamad and his ilk. It's bulldozing over us. Post-independence, this country was tugging along on the road of democracy and was doing fine. It was a slow process as Malaysians underwent a period of growing pains. Frankly, we have just begun to learn the dynamics of democracy. Suffrage means people acquire rights to self-determination. Participatory democracy meant, they can define their being and determine their future instead of having their lives run by dictates and central command of a society structured on feudalism – a paramount master and his cabal at the top, enslaving the rest. Malays are beginning to free themselves from being defined and determined by their feudal masters. Power corrupts We are moving away from a central command society to a modern one embracing democracy. We could have matured into a better society faster save for the route being suddenly and rudely interrupted by the emergence of Mahathir.
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