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DAP hands in rejection letter for fresh polls to RoS
Aidilfitri sermon to warn Muslims against ‘enemies of Islam’
Battling Islamic 'Puritans'
Aidilfitri dog video an insult to Islam, Jakim decides
Rattled Malaysians turning to bodyguards, bullet-proofed cars
DAP: Probe Muhyiddin for sedition
Chetz released on bond
Muslim dog owner’s remand extreme, born of paranoia, says Zaid

DAP hands in rejection letter for fresh polls to RoS

Posted: 02 Aug 2013 01:24 AM PDT

(MM) - The DAP submitted today a formal rejection to hold fresh party polls, telling the Registrar of Societies (RoS) it had no legal power to make such an order.

In its letter of reply to the RoS, the opposition party's secretary-general, Lim Guan Eng, said the societies regulator had failed to clearly state the reasons behind its directive and the law that empowered it to order the party hold a reelection for its central executive committee (CEC) that had been decided last year.

"In addition, Section 16(1) or 16(2) of the Societies Act 1966 clearly does not empower you to direct an organisation to hold reelection.

"As such, your directive for a DAP CEC reelection to be carried out is beyond the scope of your powers and is voided by the law," he said.

Lim, who is also Bagan MP, reminded the RoS that it was bound by the law and must abide by legal principles such as "reasonableness in the exercise of powers, natural justice and due legal process".

"As such, we request that you provide a clear explanation that states the reasons our explanation was rejected and on what legal grounds you are directing the reelection of the DAP's CEC as stated in your letter," he added.

Lim said the DAP was willing to meet with the RoS to resolve the matter, but stressed that its members would defend their rights and the party.

Questions over the DAP's status have been dragging on for nearly half a year, following Lim's disclosure on January 4 that an internal audit had showed errors in the tabulation of votes from the December 15, 2012 party elections.

He said the counting error was caused by a technical glitch when the results were transferred to a computer using the Microsoft Excel programme.

The amendments resulted in Lim's political secretary, Zairil Khir Johari, moving up from 39th position to 20th ― taking the last elected position in the party's CEC.

Following complaints by some members, the RoS began investigations that at one point led to fears that the party would be unable to use its logo in the Election 2013.

But the RoS later confirmed the validity of the DAP CEC's appointment letters to candidates, which enabled the party to field its candidates in the general election under their rocket logo.

In a letter dated July 30, the RoS said it found the DAP's explanation on the "tabulation error" of its CEC elections as unsatisfactory.

The brief contents of the letter, however, heightened suspicions of bias within the party, which was already bristling at the government's reaction following Home Minister Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi's early remarks on the matter.

Zahid was reported by Sin Chew Daily as saying that the RoS was dissatisfied with the DAP's explanation for the counting mistake and the party would be directed to hold its internal polls again.

According to the Chinese-language paper, Ahmad Zahid, who is also an Umno vice-president, said he would not interfere in RoS matters.

This led the DAP to suggest that the RoS was being used to manipulate the opposition party's internal affairs at the behest of the ruling Barisan Nasional.

Aidilfitri sermon to warn Muslims against ‘enemies of Islam’

Posted: 01 Aug 2013 06:31 PM PDT

Jakim's sermon today seemed to mirror Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Datuk Seri Jamil Khir Baharom's remarks this week when he claimed that the ongoing debate over four Muslims dropped as beauty contestants recently is part of an attempt to divide followers of the faith. — AFP pic

(The Malay Mail) - "They are planning all this carefully and wisely. They have launched psychological warfare openly and bravely to manipulate the minds and beliefs of Muslims when the Muslims are plagued by crisis of confidence and the loss of strength and unity," said the sermon.

An official sermon planned for the Aidilfitri celebration next week has warned Muslims nationwide against a conspiracy by "enemies of Islam" to manipulate them through ideas like secularism, pluralism, socialism, feminism, and positivism.

The sermon, to be read out to Muslims on the first day of Hari Raya Aidilfitri next week, suggested that such "colonial" ideas were being used to incite challenges against Islam's position in the Constitution and open debate about Syariah law.

The official sermon by the Malaysian Islamic Development Department (Jakim) was uploaded to its website yesterday, also with a rare version in English, one week earlier as Muslims nationwide wind down Ramadan, their holy month of fasting.

The warning comes amid several controversial decisions by Jakim in the last few weeks against individuals which it has deemed as "insulting Islam", including a non-Muslim blogger couple, four Muslim beauty pageant hopefuls, and a Muslim dog trainer.

"As we celebrate the Aidilfitri, we must realise the various ways and strategies of the enemies of Islam to undermine the unity and peace in the country," said the sermon here.

"They move through well-organised and devious ways by cultural pollution, spreading slander against unity either through the mass media or cyberspace, violating federal laws, questioning the position of Islam in the Constitution, (and) insulting the position of the Malay kings."

Jakim's sermon today seemed to mirror Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Datuk Seri Jamil Khir Baharom's remarks this week when he claimed that the ongoing debate over four Muslims dropped as beauty contestants recently is part of an attempt to divide followers of the faith.

Four Muslim women were dropped as contestants in the Miss Malaysia World 2013 pageant last month and are now under investigation for allegedly breaching the National Fatwa Council's edict and allegedly insulting Islam.

Federal Territory syarie chief prosecutor Ibrahim Deris was also quoted recently as saying that action can be taken against anyone belittling a fatwa, even non-Muslims, as it could be seen as insulting Islam.

The sermon also lamented increasing debates against the religion and the administration of the syariah law, despite the alleged respect afforded to Islam as the religion of federation as prescribed in the Constitution.

Jakim also reiterated its repeated line, calling for censure against what it called "colonisation of minds" through "Western ideologies and doctrines" such as secularism, pluralism, socialism, feminism, and positivism.

"They are planning all this carefully and wisely. They have launched psychological warfare openly and bravely to manipulate the minds and beliefs of Muslims when the Muslims are plagued by crisis of confidence and the loss of strength and unity," said the sermon.

The recent spotlight on Islamic decrees by Malaysian authorities on its followers as well as non-Muslims has led to heated debate over their enforcement here, with some groups deeming certain provisions under religious law to be regressive while others have voiced concern over a worrying trend of overt Islamisation in a multicultural country.

In a 105-second video reposted on YouTube on Tuesday, dog trainer Maznah Mohd Yusof is seen walking and bathing her three dogs as the "Takbir Raya", or Muslim call to prayer traditionally reserved for the first day of Hari Raya Aidilfitri, plays in the background.

The juxtaposition appeared to be a reference to the wudhu, or ablution performed by Muslims before prayer; dogs are also considered unclean by adherents of the predominant faith in Malaysia.

Maznah has since been arrested and was released from remand in Johor earlier this afternoon on a court bond. Jamil Khir has confirmed today that Jakim has decided that it was an insult to Islam.

Maznah's arrest comes after sex bloggers Alvin Tan and Vivian Lee were charged recently under the Penal Code and Sedition Act, for posting a mock "Selamat Berbuka Puasa" (breaking of fast) greeting on their Facebook page that showed them eating "bak kut teh", a soupy pork dish. Muslims are prohibited from eating pork.

Battling Islamic 'Puritans'

Posted: 01 Aug 2013 03:18 PM PDT

UCLA professor, once a fanatic himself, is now a leading scholarly voice against intolerance among Muslims. Death threats don't deter him.

After a lengthy process of textual research and prayer for divine guidance, he concluded that reports against dogs were passed on through questionable chains of transmissions, or contradicted by more favorable reports--for instance, one story of Muhammad praying with his dogs playing nearby.

Some reports against dogs bear uncanny similarities to Arab folklore, Abou El Fadl says, leading him to suspect that someone took the tales and attributed them to the prophet.

By Teresa Watanabe,TIMES RELIGION WRITER

The most incendiary Muslim in American academia knows a thing or two about Islamic fanatics. He says he used to be one as a seventh-grader in his native Kuwait.

UCLA law professor Khaled Abou El Fadl remembers beating up other kids, condemning his parents as unbelievers and destroying his sister's Rod Stewart tape, "Da Ya Think I'm Sexy?"

"I found it remarkably empowering to spew my hatred with the banner of God in my hand," he says. But challenged by his father to take up true religious scholarship, Abou El Fadl began a journey of Islamic learning that would transform him into a nemesis of the extremists he once endorsed. Today, at 38, he is a leading warrior in the intellectual struggle that exploded into America's consciousness Sept. 11: Who speaks for Islam? Who defines it?

With breathtaking bluntness, Abou El Fadl attacks Muslims who promote a strict, literalist trend in Islam, most prominently the creed of Wahhabism in Saudi Arabia.

In his writings and through the electronic media, he accuses them of an "intolerant puritanism" that values ritual over morality. He blames them for oppressing millions of women, creating hostility toward non-Muslims and giving the likes of Osama bin Laden their theological justification for terrorism. He issues scathing critiques of Saudi legal rulings that permit everything from the mistreatment of dogs to the beating of women.

For tackling the puritans in high-profile forums, Abou El Fadl has received so many death threats that new security systems are going up around his office and home. His books are banned in Saudi Arabia and his visa applications denied in Egypt.

Before Sept. 11, his daily battles would have been dismissed by outsiders as esoteric doctrinal debates. Today they are better understood as critical insights into the fierce ideological tensions raging within Islam between the forces of puritanism and moderation. They shed light on how Islam can produce such chilling extremists as Bin Laden, who exults in the carnage of Sept. 11 as "blessed strikes."

By devoting himself to a modern interpretation of the Koran, Abou El Fadl is perhaps the most articulate enemy of the Wahhabi creed that shaped Bin Laden's brand of Islam.

"The supremacist creed of the puritan groups is distinctive and uniquely dangerous," the scholar recently wrote in the influential Boston Review. "They do not merely seek self-empowerment, but aggressively seek to disempower, dominate or destroy others."

To many muftis, ayatollahs, sheiks and their followers throughout the world, Abou El Fadl has become "America's most dangerous corrupter of Islam," as one foe put it.

One international network of students claims credit for successfully working to blacklist him from most Islamic conferences and publications under the banner of protecting "the one and only true Islam."

Wahhabism's founder, 18th century evangelist Muhammad ibn 'Abd al-Wahhab, was alarmed by what he viewed as corruptions to the faith. He advocated a strict, back-to-basics approach to keep Islam as pure as the day it was revealed to the Prophet Muhammad and practiced by his early companions nearly 1,400 years ago.

Wahhabism had long been a marginal force in Islam. Abou El Fadl asserts that it has risen in prominence in the last three decades because of the collapse of Islamic institutions after colonialism, creating a vacuum of authority that puritans, backed by Saudi petrodollars, rushed to fill.

Today's puritans advocate strict gender roles and perpetual guarding against what they view as heretical innovations--be they new interpretations of the faith by scholars such as Abou El Fadl or other expressions of Islam, such as mystical Sufism or the Shiite branch of the faith.

Many followers of Wahhab describe their approach benevolently, merely as "monotheism without the frills," as one member of the Saudi-financed King Fahd Mosque in Culver City put it.

Abou El Fadl, however, says extremists have used Wahhabism to justify sometimes violent intolerance--massacres of Sufis and Shiite, for instance--or hostility to non-Muslim "infidels" that has bred terrorist acts.

Many Muslims see an even more pervasive impact of puritanism--robbing Islam of its richness and flexibility. Howard University professor Sulayman Nyang calls it "the mummification, ossification and fossilization of Islam."

Posted: 01 Aug 2013 02:48 PM PDT

(The Malay Mail) - The Malaysian Islamic Development Department (Jakim) has weighed in on the storm over the Aidilfitri dog video and decided it was insult to Islam, Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Datuk Seri Jamil Khir Baharom confirmed today.

The minister in charge of religious affairs said in light of Jakim's decision, he had directed the department to present its views to the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) for further action, Malay language daily Berita Harian reported on its website today.

The Communications and Multimedia Ministry had yesterday directed the MCMC to consult with Jakim in its probe on the video, saying this was because the matter involves religious sensitivities.

"The issue raised here could be very sensitive to a majority of our citizens... we must see the background and get views of religious experts because I understand there are several differing views," minister Datuk Seri Ahmad Shabery Cheek told reporters at a function yesterday.

The minister acknowledged that the video was created three years ago but pointed out that once any content is published online it would continue to remain accessible to Internet users.

"The essential and most important part in this case is to investigate the individual's real intention whether she intends to state her background as an animal trainer or to insult the Muslim religion and such," he said.

He said that should Jakim deem the video an insult to Islam, the MCMC would then proceed with its probe.

In the 105-second video reposted on YouTube on Tuesday, dog trainer Maznah Mohd Yusof is seen walking and bathing her three dogs as the "Takbir Raya", or Muslim call to prayer traditionally reserved for the first day of Hari Raya Aidilfitri, plays in the background.

The juxtaposition appeared to be a reference to the wudhu, or ablution performed by Muslims before prayer; dogs are also considered unclean by adherents of the predominant faith in Malaysia.

Maznah has since been arrested and was released from remand in Johor earlier this afternoon on a court bond.

According to her lawyer N. Surendran, the dog trainer has also been questioned by the MCMC.

She is being investigated for "uttering words, etc, with deliberate intent to wound the religious feelings of any person" under section 298A of the Penal Code and section 4 of the Sedition Act.

If convicted, Maznah, famously known as Chetz Yusof, could face a jail term of up to one year or a fine, or both.

After the video started making its rounds on the Internet, local news site Mynewshub.com quoted Chetz as saying that she made the video in 2010 to show that dogs are not "haram" (forbidden) as widely-believed, and that Muslims could keep canines as pets.

"Dogs are not 'haram'; if they are wet, just 'samak'," she was quoted as saying.

"Samak" is the ritual cleansing performed by Muslims when they come into contact with items considered ritually unclean, of which wet dogs are considered to be by some followers of the faith.

Maznah had also told news site Free Malaysia Today in a 2011 interview that she follows the Shafie school of thought in Islam that does not deem dogs as "haram", but merely requires believers to cleanse themselves after touching a wet dog.

Maznah's arrest comes after sex bloggers Alvin Tan and Vivian Lee were charged recently under the Penal Code and Sedition Act, for posting a mock "Selamat Berbuka Puasa" (breaking of fast) greeting on their Facebook page that showed them eating "bak kut teh", a soupy pork dish. Muslims are prohibited from eating pork.

Rattled Malaysians turning to bodyguards, bullet-proofed cars

Posted: 01 Aug 2013 02:32 PM PDT

(The Malaysian Insider) - Many Malaysians are looking to bullet-proofing their cars or hiring bodyguards amidst the rise in shooting cases in the country which has sparked fear for their safety.

According to Singapore daily, The Straits Times, manufacturers of bullet- proof glass for cars and homes reported getting more inquiries and business than usual, while agencies providing bodyguards and security consulting services were beefing up staff strength in anticipation of increased demand.

A director of a bulletproof-shield manufacturer, James Ooi, said the company used to get about four local clients a month before the spate of shootings.

"In the past few days, we have received 15 calls daily from clients asking us to provide bullet-proof shields for their cars," he told the Singapore Straits Times yesterday.

Ooi said it costs between RM30,000 and RM50,000 to bullet-proof a car, depending on the size of the doors and windows.

In one of the recent shooting incidents, the victims were shot while they were in their cars.

Anti-crime body MyWatch chief R. Sri Sanjeevan was shot as his car stopped at a traffic light in his hometown in Bahau, Negri Sembilan last Saturday. He remains in Serdang hospital where doctors are waiting for his condition to stabilise before removing a bullet lodged in his abdomen.

The Singapore daily also reported that the public's concern was growing at a time when Malaysians are already grappling with the higher incidence of other crimes, including robbery and snatch theft.

Bodyguard agencies are also expecting demand for their service to rise.

Jack Yin, who runs a bodyguard agency, said he was recruiting more personnel as he expects demand to go up in the next few weeks.

"Demand for bodyguards usually goes up about 20% in the one or two weeks after a spike in crime," he said, adding that on a monthly average, he gets three to four clients.

Yin said hiring an armed bodyguard for 12 hours a day for 28 days would cost about RM9,000.

Ebrand Chettri, who also owns a bodyguard agency, said he was planning to equip his 20 bodyguards with bullet-proof vests.

"It is a one-off cost for me but I would rather pay than take chances with my staff's safety. Prevention is better than cure," he said.

DAP: Probe Muhyiddin for sedition

Posted: 01 Aug 2013 02:07 PM PDT

DAP wants the Deputy Prime Minister probed for sedition for saying non-Muslims are insulting Islam.

Anisah Shukry, FMT

DAP wants Deputy Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin probed for sedition following his statement that non-Muslims were insulting Islam.

The Opposition party felt that since the police were quick to arrest dog trainer Maznah Mohd Yusof for allegedly wounding religious feelings, the same should be applied to Muhyiddin, who is also Umno deputy president.

The party said the Deputy Prime Minister's declaration that non-Muslims were insulting Islam, was offensive and had enough grounds for the police to investigate him under Section 298A of the Penal Code and the Sedition Act.

"Maznah is being investigated under the same Acts, so since she was said to be insulting the peoples religious feelings, we ask that Muhyiddin to be probed under the same Acts as well," Taman Segamat DAP branch chairman Yew Jia Haur said.

Yew, who is also Segambut MP Lim Lip Eng's assistant, said this after lodging a police report against the Deputy Prime Minister at the Sentul police headquarters today.

Muhyiddin, on Tuesday, made the "offensive" remarks after a reporter asked him to comment on Maznah's controversial video, which depicted her celebrating Hari Raya with her three dogs.

Maznah's three-year-old video had sparked an uproar among some Muslims, who had misinterpreted her Raya greeting as an attempt to equate Muslims with dogs.

Muhyiddin had told reporters: "Muslims do not insult the religion of non-Muslims… But non-Muslims are insulting our religion."

He was apparently unaware that Maznah, who goes by the name of Chetz in the video, is a Muslim.

READ MORE HERE

Chetz released on bond

Posted: 01 Aug 2013 02:03 PM PDT

(The Star) - Maznah Mohd Yusof, the dog trainer who caused a stir by posting a video of her celebrating Hari Raya with her dogs, was released Friday on a court bond.

Her lawyer G. Visvanathan Nair said court registrar Mohd Anuar Ostadi made the judgment around 12.20pm.

"Maznah will be set free and will be required to present herself if needed in future pertaining to the case.

"If she fails to be present in court, she will have to pay a fine of RM10,000," he said when contacted.

He added that the bond was awarded under Section 118 of the Criminal Procedure Code.

"She has now been taken to the police station to retrieve her belongings and should be released soon," he said.

Maznah, who is also known as Chetz, has been at the centre of a social media storm after a video of her celebrating Hari Raya with her dogs three years ago was uploaded to YouTube on Monday.

She was arrested on Wednesday and was initially in custody in Bukit Aman in Kuala Lumpur, before being brought here and remanded.

Meanwhile, lawyer Latheefa Koya, who is also representing Maznah, said the release condition involving the court bond was uncommon.

She questioned why the police had applied for a bond under Section 118 of the Criminal Procedure Code, which is for witnesses and complainants.

"It is very strange. That process cannot be applied on her because she's a suspect. If they are going to charge anybody, it's her," said Latheefa.

Latheefa explained that a suspect would normally be released unconditionally or with a police bail.

"If they want her to give a statement, they can call her anytime. She has admitted to being the woman behind the video. Or if they think there's an offence, charge her," she said.

Maznah was investigated under Section 298A of the Penal Code, which deals with causing disharmony on grounds of religion.

Muslim dog owner’s remand extreme, born of paranoia, says Zaid

Posted: 01 Aug 2013 12:05 PM PDT

(The Malay Mail) - He observed that Maznah had been treated like a criminal who posed a serious security threat to the country when she had yet to be charged, let alone convicted by a court of law.

Datuk Zaid Ibrahim has called the decision to remand a Muslim woman over an Aidilfitri video which featured her dogs a result of paranoia and suggested that Muslims were "protected species" in Malaysia.

Screen capture of the series of tweets Zaid posted on the issue.

Besides the former Cabinet minister, a number of other Malay-Muslim community leaders have also labelled the action excessive.

"You can investigate any case but there is no need to remand, no need to detain people unless it's absolutely necessary. This is not a hardcore crime," Zaid told The Malay Mail Online yesterday, referring to the arrest and detention of Maznah Mohd Yusof on Wednesday on sedition claims.

The former de facto law minister during the Abdullah administration denounced the police action on the 38-year-old woman as excessive in relation to her purported offence.

He observed that Maznah had been treated like a criminal who posed a serious security threat to the country when she had yet to be charged, let alone convicted by a court of law.

"I think they have taken a high-handed approach... everyone is paranoid," said the former lawyer who once ran the country's largest legal firm, Zaid Ibrahim & Co.

"Everybody is influenced by public opinion and everybody is scared to do the right thing," he added.

Kredit: www.malaysia-today.net

Jumaat, 2 Ogos 2013

Malaysia Today - Your Source of Independent News

Malaysia Today - Your Source of Independent News

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