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| Soi Lek and Najib - using Islam to scare off non-Muslims |
Muslim leaders hit out at Prime Minister Najib Razak for belittling his own Islamic faith and joining MCA president Chua Soi Lek in warning non-Muslim Malaysians that they would have to suffer lifestyle changes if Pakatan Rakyat came to power as PAS would insist on forming an Islamic state.
“Shame on Najib for turning his back and ridiculing his own faith. It is utter nonsense. Did the Buddhists, Christians and Hindus have to change their lifestyles in Kelantan? Is Tuan Guru Nik Aziz an extremist compared to Umno-Perkasa’s Ibrahim Ali? When PAS led Perak, did I implement extremist policies, rules or practices,” Bukit Gantang MP and former Perak mentri besar Nizar Jamaluddin told Malaysia Chronicle.
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| Nizar |
“Dr Chua is right to remind you that they (PAS) have not given up on their theocratic Islamic state. And I am sure that if it is implemented, it would change your way of life and affect the Chinese community,” Malaysian Insiderreported Najib as saying.
Unity government and hypocrisy
The 57-year Umno president appeared to have forgotten that he and his party had tried all ways and means to form a unity government with PAS after their political power was whittled down by the Pakatan in the 2008 election.
| Dr Siti |
“It shows the hypocrite that Najib and Umno are. When Najib and Umno face a Malay Muslim community, they talk about defending Islam. But when they face a Chinese audience, suddenly they are against an Islamic agenda. Are they Muslims for real?” MP for Kota Raja Dr Siti Mariah Mahmud told Malaysia Chronicle.
“When Najib goes to U.S, he is thick-skinned enough to offer to teach Americans how to overcome Islamophobia. But back home in his own country, where Islam is the official religion, he implies to the non-Muslims that an Islamic state is to be repulsed because it is dangerous and will swamp all other religions? What sort of a man and a Muslim is this? Will the real Najib stand up, please?
Insulting Islam and Kelantan the best example
Other Pakatan Rakyat leaders also lashed out at Soi Lek, the MCA president, for his gross disrespect to the Muslim religion.
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| Kor Ming |
“Kelantan which is governed by PAS is the best example where all religions can co-exist harmoniously. Kelantan is also the state which houses the largest Buddha statue in Tumpat. Chua Soi Lek is not only arrogant, ignorant and disrespectful of Islam, he shows he is unfit to lead a modern country using modern policies and new politics.”
Constitutional play and democracy at work
Under Malaysia’s federal constitution, it is only possible to change the existing provisions and create an Islamic state if the proposer has two-thirds parliamentary majority.
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| Koo Ham |
“For example, if Pakatan has two-thirds majority and PAS insists on hududlaws or an Islamic state, DAP will object and PAS won’t be able to push through their ideal which we respect but do not agree with," Perak DAP chairman Ngeh Koo Ham told Malaysia Chronicle.
"But If PAS on its own gets two-thirds majority, there is no way that DAP can refuse because we all have to respect the rules. But we will try to win back enough seats at the next election so that we can overturn such a constitutional change. Now this is democracy at work for you."
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Najib and Soi Lek warn Chinese: PAS will rule if Pakatan wins...
There is no substitute for local engagement withUmno/MCA when it comes to changing perceptions about Islam and Muslims. Even though much damage has been done to our reputations, there is still time and hope to set the record straight.
n demonising PAS, Umno/MCA reveal they are antiquated!
OCTOBER 11, 2010
It gives me great consolation in uploading this piece in my blog In demonising PAS, MCA shows it is out of ideas. The Malaysian Insider October. This piece was written after the Chinese were warned by both the President of Umno and the Chairman of MCA that ‘PAS will rule if Pakatan wins, BN warns Chinese (Clara Chooi, The Malaysiainsider 10 Oct). Such demonisation were a favourite pastime of the BN leaders but when such tricks were used in the current context of the New Politics, it looks so ancient and antiquated. It bodes well for BN leaders to wakeup and rise above the colonial legacy of ‘divide and rule’ and debunk the Politics of Fear that severely undermines reason, intellectual integrity and honesty.
Days of Umno/MCA/BN pulling the wool over the rakyats’ eyes are over. Sadly though, the wool remains over their eyes. They are still steep in racial and religious bigotry! Wake up, we are in the world of New Politics – the politics of empowering the rakyat with knowledge and information. The rakyat then decide as to who will be mandated to govern and who shall be the opposition. This is the age of informed-citizenry! This is the emerging New Malaysia and the future is already here!
Writing like this (In demonising PAS, MCA shows it is out of ideas) reinforces our conviction that the Islam that we advocate within the ambits of democracy and the legislative and democratic process – as ‘Justice for All’ and respecting others’ beliefs truly reflects our slogan of ‘PAS for All”. More importantly now, we shall continue to uphold the shared values and goals of our Common Policy Frameworks (CPF) in Pakatan.
In demonising PAS, MCA shows it is out of ideas. The Malaysian Insider October 10, 2010OCT 10 — MCA president Datuk Seri Dr Chua Soi Lek warned the Chinese community today that PAS is likely to go back to its autocratic Islamic stand if Pakatan Rakyat (PR) comes to power.
Heard that before? Yes it is the spinning of an old MCA record. The message is that while Umno and MCA are not perfect PAS is worse. But MCA is now completely missing the plot if they believe the Chinese are spooked by PAS. In 1999, there was genuine concern of a green tide, the result of a campaign to demonise PAS and paint them as conservative mullahs.
But 11 years ago, Malaysia was a very different country. Most people in the Chinese community view the arrogance, racism and complete disregard of the rule of law by Umno as much worse sins than anything that PAS can do..Read More
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Thanks, Jon - we'll take it from here |
CHICAGO, IL |
The root cause of all this hostility is ignorance and misinformation. Americans are still woefully misinformed about Islam. According to a recent Pew Research Poll, 65% of Americans know either "some" or "not very much" about Islam. One in four Americans know "nothing at all." This void in knowledge is fertile ground into which Islamophobes can plant their seeds of misinformation. Yet, I cannot blame my fellow non-Muslim Americans for this lack of knowledge about Islam. Many Americans know very little about even their own faiths.
The Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life released the US Religious Knowledge Survey detailing Americans' knowledge about religion. And it does not look pretty. According to the survey, more than four-in-ten Catholics in the United States (45%) do not know that their church teaches that the bread and wine used in Communion do not merely symbolize but actually become the body and blood of Christ. About half of Protestants (53%) cannot correctly identify Martin Luther as the person whose writings and actions inspired the Protestant Reformation, which made their religion a separate branch of Christianity. Roughly four-in-ten Jews (43%) do not recognize that Maimonides, one of the most venerated rabbis in history, was Jewish.
This puts Americans' lack of knowledge about Islam in perspective. Nevertheless, ignorance is our real enemy in this struggle against the forces of hatred and division, and the more ignorance there is, the stronger the hand of those who seek to marginalize the American Muslim community. What can Muslims do about this? "Work harder," is the inevitable answer. "Work harder at educating the American public about Islam."
Yet, even that is becoming more and more difficult to do. People are being told not to trust what Muslims say because they are all practicing "taqiyya." The recent declaration of Faisal Shahzad that when he took an oath of allegiance to the United States, he "did not mean it" does not help to dispel this falsehood. Moreover, there are moves to change American textbooks, which have been deemed by some to be too "pro-Muslim." So, what are we to do?
More engagement, on both a personal and national level, needs to be undertaken. American Muslims all live somewhere, and that "somewhere" has neighbors. American Muslims need to know their neighbors on an intimate, personal level. Exchange gifts, go to block parties, coach softball teams, become Neighborhood Watch block captains - that is the best way to teach about Islam, by showing what "real live Islam" looks like. Yes, public service announcements highlighting the role of Muslim 9/11 first responders do help in a big way. Yes, more credible, honest Muslim spokespeople in the mainstream media help. But, local engagement is the key.
In addition, Muslims must enter into the field of the arts in droves: writing books, producing television shows, and making films. Muslims have already made great strides: the wonderful work of Unity Productions Foundation, Azhar Usman, Wajahat Ali, and G. Willow Wilson are excellent examples. I am also trying to contribute to this effort with my forthcoming book, Noble Brother, which is the story of the Prophet Muhammad told entirely in poetry. Each one of us has a talent, and we should try to use that talent to contribute to the American Muslim story.
Moreover, Muslims should start promoting themselves a little more on a local level. I was speaking to a Muslim producer of a local Chicago TV network news affiliate, and she told me that a great way to increase the number of positive stories about Muslims in the media is to self-promote. More of us should be the "local experts" on Islam and the American Muslim story and share this expertise with their local news media.
We should all have Press Kits ready for distribution. If we are doing something positive, such as running a marathon for a good cause or donating to a free clinic, we should send out a press release. Foment good relationships with local print and broadcast reporters. This is already being done all across the country, but we need more of it. We all know that American Muslims contribute positively to the country's well being every single day; more of our neighbors should know about it as well.
This is not an easy task, not in the least. But, it is essential. It is not necessary that every non-Muslim American become experts at Islam; many are not even expert in their own faiths. But what is necessary is that we are all familiar enough with each other - our likes, our dislikes, our hopes, our dreams - that when we see images of pedophile priests or "Islamic" suicide bombers, we say to ourselves, "I know that is not the reality, because my neighbor is not like that. And I believe my neighbor more than I believe what's on the TV." And we will all the better for it.
Hesham A. Hassaballa is a Chicago physician and writer. He is the co-author of "The Beliefnet Guide to Islam," published by Doubleday in 2006. His blog is called God, Faith, and a Pen.
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