Hasan says it is ‘jihad’

Jun 19, 2014

SHAH ALAM: Muslim NGO Jati has urged all Muslims to stand behind the Selangor Islamic Affairs Council’s (Mais) decision not to return the 321 copies of the Malay and Iban language Bible to the Bible Society Malaysia (BSM).

Its president Hasan Ali said that this is as Mais has no ulterior motive for this other than to protect the faith.

“To Malaysians who are Muslim, Islamic organisations, Malay-Muslim organisations and others who want Islam glorified, stand firm behind Mais and its efforts to protect Allah’s religion which is now facing deterioration.

“Those who do not want Islam to spread in the country are already working in a planned manner not only linking among themselves but also with international agencies...

“Jati believes that this case not only touches on our principles as Muslims but it is a jihad (struggle) for which we are answerable to Allah,” he said in a statement.

The former Selangor PAS commissioner and state executive council (exco) member also urged Mais to “not bow to any pressure from interested parties, be it from the attorney-general or state government”.

“Bow only to Allah’s orders,” he said, slamming also Menteri Besar Abdul Khalid Ibrahim and Muslim exco members for “not defending Islam”.

Hasan, who is part of Mais, said the attorney-general (AG) himself did not explicitly say return the holy books, but said to deal with the seized items in accordance with the law.

Besides, he said, some law experts say that the AG’s decision not to prosecute is not definitive, and that “there is still room and ways to contest and change that decision”.

One way, he said, was to go back to the Selangor Non-Islamic Religions (Control of Propagation Among Muslims) Enactment.

“As far as Jati knows, more than 25 years have passed since the enactment came into force and not single offender has faced prosecution.

“It is time the provisions in this enactment are used. Whether the provisions stand will be for the court to decide,” he said.

Among others, the Enactment bans the use of the word ‘Allah’ by non-Muslims. The word is used in the seized holy books, which are in the Malay and Iban languages.

Three hundred and twenty-one copies of the Bible were seized by the Selangor Islamic Affairs Department (Jais) in a raid on BSM's Petaling Jaya office in January.

The Selangor government has asked Jais to return the items following the AG's decision to close the case, but Mais, which oversees Jais, is resisting this.

Mais says it still believes that the holy books are in contravention of the Enactment. --Malaysiakini