It takes a mega stupid Najib to say 'stupid' PAS

Najib dares 'stupid' PAS to leave Pakatan

Gathering his troops to face their "toughest election in the history of the country", Umno president Najib Abdul Razak today launched a blistering attack on Pakatan Rakyat in front 2,700 of party delegates.

an atmosphere of fear, intimidation and hatred.

The Malays will become a minority group who are incapable of championing their rights if they continue to be divided, said former prime minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad.

He said the Malays were now divided into three factions and that only through unity could they become an effective majority group to protect their interest.

“Previously, the Malays were united into one party to the extent that they succeeded in opposing (the proposed establishment of) the Malayan Union,” he said when responding to a question from a participant at the premier lecture by him, entitled “The Development of the Civilisation and Culture of the Malaysian Community Towards the Formation of a Progressive Nation”, here today.

Dr Mahathir, 85, said the voice of the Malays would be drowned if they were divided into several minority groups and needed the support of other groups to achieve the objectives of their struggles to preserve their own race.

Regarding the group who championed the individual’s fundamental rights, the fourth Malaysian prime minister said the original democratic principle that emphasised on the rights of the majority had now turned to the aspects of the individual’s fundamental rights.

He said if the freedom of the individuals was allowed without any restriction, this would create tension in the community.

Dr Mahathir said demonstrations were allowed in a democracy but if they were carried out on a large scale without restriction, this could bring about negative results such as jeopardising business activities.

He said it was also important to develop positive personal values from the young age so that this would continue to be upheld by the people as they grew older.

The same cannot be said of Islam, which remains one of the least understood religions in the United States and Western Europe today. The majority of Americans, for example, do not know enough about Islam to recognize how an extremist interpretation differs from mainstream practice.

Instead, sadly, we have seen cases time and again where individuals equate Islam with terrorism. They express anger about “Islamic terrorism” and fear of a “Muslim takeover” of the government. Stories about President Obama’s “secret Muslim identity” continue to circulate, as do accounts of sharia being forced into the American legal system – despite the absence of any concrete evidence supporting either of these claims. 

Can Soi Lek remake himself into a Hero against Hudud

Soi Lek, with the help of MCA newspapers and Umno-linked portals, has tried to portray himself as a ‘passionate’ champion against hudud – the Islamic criminal law that prescribes outrageous punishment such as stoning adulterers to death, whipping, caning, amputation of limbs and beheading for guilty Muslims.

Soi Lek tries to cheat the Malay voters

PKR de-facto chief Anwar Ibrahim has laid to rest concerns that his party might side with PAS in implementing the Islamic hudud law, which prescribes outrageous punishment including beheading, stoning to death, amputation of limbs and whipping.

“When people ask about my stance on hudud, I tell them that PKR and Pakatan’s stance is to support the constitution. But when people ask my personal stance as a Muslim, this is a tricky question. If you answer ‘no’, then you are dead. But if you answer ‘yes’, then tomorrow’s New Straits Times headline will be ‘Anwar supports hudud law’,” Anwar, who is also Opposition Leader, told a dinner-talk at Subang Jaya on Tuesday.

Malaysia’s Federal Constitution bars the introduction of hudud by any state government without the consent of the federal government. Whilst the federal government can only introduce hudud if the ruling party of the day passes an amendment to the Constitution with a two-thirds majority.

Just for Muslims will not arrest ripple effects of such a law

Most of the participants were Chinese from various associations and guilds in the Subang Jaya area.

Although, PAS has repeated that hudud is only for Muslims, there is fear that the archaic law might deter foreign investors, who increasing place a weightage on human rights in the place where they put their funds.

Even Muslims themselves are not all for it, although it is a requirement under the religion. Many see the practice as belonging to a long-gone era and wonder why PAS wanted to turn back the clock in Malaysia.

Anwar, the Permatang Pauh MP, assured the non-Malays in the audience, who expressed their concerns about hudud to him, that he would let his counterparts at PAS know, especially Spiritual Adviser Nik Aziz.

As a Muslim, Anwar said he accepted hudud bbut reiterated that as a governing body, the Pakatan could not endorse hudud given the country’s multi-racial makeup where a susbstantial number of people clearly opposed the Islamic criminal law.

However, his critics have asked why he keeps pointing the finger at PAS, which openly aspires for an Islamic state that includes hudud law, but was silent when Umno declared Malaysia an Islamic state several years ago.

Soi Lek also kept silent when Deputy Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin recently said the timing was not right for hudud implementation – implying that Umno would introduce it later.

“The fact is that hudud is now interesting to nobody but Soi Lek himself and the hardcore Muslims whom he is angering with his comments. To an extent it is Umno’s fault for not ticking him off for insulting Islam with all the unfair and one-sided hudud commentS,” said Tian.

‘But it is clear this latest round is also an attempt for the MCA to try and get public sympathy ahead of the general election. Let’s see whether they can breathe life into a coffin.”

Its boss, the scandal-tainted MCA president Chua Soi Lek is quoted by his party organ that the DAP must openly state whether it agrees that the implementation of hudud law will affect not only Muslims but also non-Muslims.

He is not only flogging a dead horse issue, he is just plain stupid.

The DAP is not the ruling government. The Barisan Nasional (BN) is the ruling party and that includes MCA.

BN-Umno-MCA has already declared Malaysia an Islamic state. So, why are you, Chua Soi Lek, not directing the questions to Umno instead?

It is because Malaysia is already an Islamic state that the Islamic authorities, like Jais, can raid a church without any valid reason or warrant. Why is MCA so quiet about this?

Ot is it because the action was conducted by Umno-controlled Jais? So, you don’t have the guts to utter a word?

What is hudud compared to Umno’s Islamic state

Why can’t Chua and his gang accept simple logic? Malaysia is already an Islamic state, so what is hudud?

Hudud is just part of Islam and an Islamic state, so please get this into your pea brain.

It is also baffling why Umno, Perkasa and Utusan Malaysia continue to remain mum with Chua’s continuous spewing of insults to the country’s official religion.

I guess I should not be baffled as it is all BN’s political agenda aimed at manipulating the people’s political mindset towards disunity.

BN’s continuous drive to sow the seeds of racial and religious discord is just not 1Malaysia which is just hollow sloganeering.

Umno deputy president Muhyiddin Yassin has clearly stated that the time is not yet right to implement hudud.

What does that mean? It means the long-term agenda of Umno is also to implement hudud. So, Chua, why don’t you ask Umno, currently the ruling elite, to state its stand?

Only criminals, Soi Lek and Umno fear hudud

There is no need for anyone to state a stand as the issue of hudud is already redundant because Malaysia, as declared by BN-Umno-MCA that Malaysia is already an Islamic state.

So, please stop spewing garbage to ruin the unity of Malaysians.

We demand Muslims to respect other faiths. Likewise, we must also respect their faith and their right to practice.

In Umno’s case, it is using Jais to infringe the rights of others. Do you see such things happening in Kelantan?

Chua, why are you so fearful of hudud? Only criminals will fear hudud, an Islamic criminal law. So, it is criminal-prone Muslims who will have the greatest fear of hudud.

Hudud cannot implemented on non-Muslims and this is something that cannot be changed, domestic or globally. It is Umno’s manipulations, with MCA’s support, and disregard for the rights and laws of the country that is the problem. Not the law.

 Umno continued its attack on the opposition today, claiming that the country’s official religion Islam will come under grave threat should Pakatan Rakyat take over.

The delegates, who were debating the president Najib Tun Razak ‘s speech on the last day of the Umno annual general assembly, said that only under Umno’s continuous rule would the position of Islam be protected.

They said that events after the 2008 general election have shown that Pakatan’s “liberal” tendencies were “humiliating” the Muslims.

From allowing non-Muslims to use the term “Allah” to the silent endorsement of Seksualiti Merdeka, a group fighting for freedom of sexual orientation, Umno members said that Pakatan rule would mean “the end of Islam in Malaysia”.

“Why not? Why can’t this happen? Look at what they (Pakatan) have fought for since 2008? They have done well in raising matters sensitive to Islam,” said Rizalman Mokhtar, an Umno delegate from the Kuala Lumpur Federal Territory.

Seksualiti Merdeka took the spotlight when the authorities banned its festival this year. The group claimed the ban was a deliberate move by the Barisan Nasional (BN) government to divert attention from its weaknesses.

The “Allah” issue sparked heated debates and controversy last year, resulting in attacks against churches and mosques.

Rizalman said PAS, as the Islamist component in Pakatan, had failed to defend the religion as it was “kowtowing” to the DAP, which has become “the new authority on Islam”.

PAS a waning influence
The attack on the predominantly Chinese DAP has been the focal point among Umno members in this year’s general assembly.

Observers believe that the frenzied assault on the DAP, seen as a threat to the Malays and Islam, is an age-old tactic employed by Umno to exploit Malay’s distrust towards non-Malays.

Surveys have shown that the tactic has been effective in wooing back the Malay votes towards Umno, which is seen as the only party capable of preserving Malay rule.

Umno was quick to dismiss PAS more progressive brand of Islam as a political stunt to win non-Malay votes. It also said the shift from conservatism to progressive Islam indicated that PAS’ influence in Pakatan was waning.

Umno delegates said their party, on the other hand, have done much to protect Islam and incorporate it into the BN administration.

“We have produced an effective Islamic administration. Can the same be said for those on the other side?” asked Shabudin Yahya, a delegate from Penang.

The strong racial-religious undertone of the delegates at this year’s general assembly comes amid a backdrop of calls for transformation by Najib.

Analysts believe that the prime minister needs a stronger mandate to retain his position and only a return of BN’s customary two-thirds majority in Parliament can guarantee he remains in office.

With non-Malay support fast dropping, the observers say that Umno is now betting on stronger Malay votes, which explains the heightened racial rhetoric played by its leaders.

UK authorities, media, and anti-Muslim campaigns have been inflaming anti-Muslim prejudice by criticizing and even declaring open season on Muslims. The so-called prejudice has apparently changed to systematic and open state discrimination in the country. 
The sudden formation and rise of the racist and anti-Muslim group, English Defence League (EDL) that is against the spread of Islam and Sharia law, is the result of politicians and the media encouraging Islamophobia across Britain. 
Consequently, insulting, ignoring, and caricaturing Islam and Muslim communities is considered as being acceptable, since they judge these defaming ways as part of culture, not racism. Analysts say the spread of Islamophobia is directly related to the “war on terror,” and an apparently rational reason for the Western powers to invade the Muslim countries, and intervention across the Middle East region. 
As a result, Stop the War Coalition, together with several Muslim organizations, have arranged a conference on 21 May in the heart of East London's Muslim community to discuss about Islamophobia and the possible ways to confront this dominating issue.The Conference, titled “Confronting anti-Muslim hatred in Britain and Europe,” is expected to gather Community figures, campaigners, academics, experts and victims of Islamophobia from all over Europe to debate about the impacts of the current anti-Muslim hatred in UK and all over the world and the best ways to campaign against it. 
Principal activists and experts from Britain, Europe, and the US, including Lindsey German, Marwan Muhammad, and Kenza Dridar will address the conference. Kenza Drider, the courageous French Muslim who has received global media coverage for her confrontation against the French law on burqa-ban, will speak at the conference. The highly active critic of the French government's proposed burqa ban, revealed that in an anti-Islam country, “it is almost a crime to be a Muslim.” She has frankly said, “I would rather go to prison than take off the face veil. Are they going to put a woman in prison because of a scrap of material? It's ridiculous and makes the country I love look stupid." The conference organizers have insisted that all the campaigners and activists have to participate in this urgent conference to raise a challenge to the current threat of Islamophobia. “We need to insist that attacks on Muslims are racist and unacceptable in public life. We need to respond to Islamophobia in the media, from the police, politicians, and racists on the street and we need to develop links with European campaigners to help spread our arguments.”