Rulers must address ‘Allah’ issue

Syed Ali Alhabshee today urged the Conference of Rulers to address the ongoing “Allah” controversy to curb untoward disputes, especially on social media.

The Umno Cheras division chief said that only the nine rulers of the states had full power to put a stop to the dissent, as stipulated in the Federal Constitution.

“Only the Conference of Rulers have the ability to resolve the issue,” Syed Ali said on his blog today.

“The council must immediately take the initiative to resolve the situation to ensure the issue is not discussed openly especially on social media,” he added.

Syed Ali urged concerned parties to put an end to open discussions on the matter as it would only cause chaos and confusion among the people.

“The enthusiasm of various parties to declare their views and criticisms on the issue is only worsening the situation.

“The actions of some who deliberately politicise the matter have also led to confusion and tension among the public,” he said.

“Instead of openly dissenting, those involved should find a way to solve the problem once and for all,” he added.

Syed Ali believed that stern action must be taken by authorities against “non-Muslims who clearly disrespect the court’s decision and sensitivity of Muslims on the usage of ‘Allah’”.

“I urged the Conference of Rulers to hold an extraordinary meeting to to discuss the usage of “Allah” (term) before it leads to disunity among the people,” he said.

He expressed disappointment that such an issue could be raised despite years of harmony and respect for Islam as the country’s official religion.

“Today, many parties are bold enough to insult the sanctity of Islam,” he lamented.

The Conference of Rulers is a council comprising the nine rulers of the Malay states, and the governors or Yang di-Pertua Negeri of the other four states.

The ‘Allah’ issue has been a bone of contention between Muslims and Christians in Malaysia for decades; many Muslims believe ‘Allah’ is exclusive to their community, while Christians insist that the Arabic word for ‘God’ predates Islam and is used by non-Muslims throughout the world.

The matter was recently reignited when The Herald editor Father Lawrence Andrew reportedly told news portal The Malaysian Insider on Dec 27 that churches in Selangor would still use the word ‘Allah’ in their weekend mass.

This sparked protest from several Muslim groups who saw his statement as a direct challenge to the Selangor Sultan’s decree prohibiting non-Muslims in the state from using the word ‘Allah’.

Last Friday, about 400 Muslim protesters burnt an effigy of Lawrence in front of a police station while the Klang Muslim Solidarity Secretariat intended to rally against Lawrence outside the Church of Our Lady of Lourdes during Sunday mass.

Threatened by police action, the 50 protesters eventually gathered at the car park of the nearby Stadium Sultan Sulaiman, while a small group of people of various beliefs gathered outside the church in solidarity with the Christians.

Meanwhile, the Selangor Islamic Religious Department (Jais) raided the Bible Society of Malaysia (BSM) office in Damansara Kim last Thursday, arresting two of its leaders and seizing over 300 Bibles in Malay and Iban. -FMT