Misrepresentation of Islam by Malaysian religious leaders
Art by CHUAN ZUI
By APUT
Malaysia is shifting ever more towards Islamic moral conservatism.
Judging from the continuous declarations by our Prime Minister and his deputy that Malaysia is an Islamic state, to the enforcement of laws against what certain parties view as immoral and indecent acts, we have, in my opinion, reached the brink of a radical Islamic revolution in Malaysia.
This may not seem like a big deal, but the reason it should be highlighted is because the religious community is getting away with actions that are eroding not only the faith of the younger generation of Muslims towards the religious establishment, but also the sense of solidarity that has kept this country together for the past 50 years.
Historically, it all started with politics. PAS was the earliest to misrepresent the religion in the 1960s, going so far as to announce to the country that whosoever that did not vote for them were apostates. Their leader, Nik Aziz, recently issued a similar, though watered down remark earlier in this year. This announcement in the past caused people to shun the burial of relatives, annul marriages, and some even so far as to cut family ties with their siblings and parents, which you can read about in the book Ousted! by Patrick Keith.
Today, Islam continues to be misrepresented and invoked carelessly through the actions of those who profess to be doing what is right, but in reality are bringing forth questionable methods of leadership and agendas.
A few important cases have transpired under the leadership of the mufti of our state of Perak. In an earlier scandal, he suggested that those with AIDS be quarantined on an island, justifying this with the claim that “the disease or virus they carry will [therefore] not threaten others.”
In addition, there was also an SMS scam stating that Datuk Azhar Mansor, who sailed around the world, had committed apostasy and was preparing to baptize 100 people in a church in Ipoh, causing a protest. The mufti was aware of this issue, yet did nothing to stop the rumors from spreading.
But he isn’t the only one with a mind of damaging our national unity in favor of religion.
Remember the Takaful Malaysia’s Deepavali fiasco last year?
According to the e-mail sent out by Takaful Malaysia’s Sharia Department Head, Mohamad Fauzi Mustaffa, Muslims who wished Hindus Happy Deepavali “must repent and not repeat it in the future” because this was deemed as idol worship.
Deepavali, or the festival of lights, is basically the day Hindus celebrate the triumph of good over evil.
Interestingly, the first person to speak out against this e-mail was the mufti of Perak, much to my personal amazement.
As if all these cases were not enough, the younger generations of Muslims are continually harassed for they way they choose to dress, the places they choose to go out at night, or even the way they publicly choose to show their affection.
What’s more, the most recent tale of harassment that made the papers, which again happened in Perak, was just a reminder of how badly the moral police treat women who are detained for apparently dressing inappropriately.
However, there are religious leaders within our country who are of sound mind. The mufti of Perlis has continually astounded the Malaysian Islamic population with his reason and liberalism, outstanding among all his religious peers. His calls to reduce the influence and hold of conservative Muslims on the religion, and his humble admissions that even religious leaders aren’t perfect, demonstrate that he is basically the voice of the current generation of Muslims, who are challenging the religious leaders to prove and earn their leadership.
I am not here to dispute the religion, but when a group of people go out with video cameras to parks to catch people in lewd acts, in the name of Allah, you have to admit it is not only embarrassing and degrading, and it does nothing to solve the problem at hand.
If anything, the religious leaders have been nothing less than hypocritical, insisting on going after the common people instead of leveling allegations and starting investigations even when polarized pictures of those involved are all over the Internet. Case in point here would be of the alleged affair between an MP and a Senator. There was never any follow up by the religious authorities on this case.
Islam is a peaceful religion that insists on counseling those who do wrong. It encourages us to harmonize even with those who do not believe as we do. It tells us to respect our elders, and at the same time educate the young.
There was never a mention of public humiliation via the Internet of teenagers caught smooching in a park. There was never any mention of having to chastise a woman for not dressing modestly: that’s her prerogative. We are encouraged to counsel her, not load her up unto a truck, interrogate and degrade her, and then lock her up for a night at the local police precinct.
All these highlighted issues are not my grouse with the religion per se. I love my religion, and at the same time, I respect the other religious values available in this wonderful and diverse country. However, it is these fanatical theocrats but that make me start to wonder who made them the judges among their peers, being just as human as the next guy.
–
APUT is a contributing writer for theCICAK.
Ahmad Hafidz Bin Baharom Alam Shah aka Aput is just a ranting and raving lunatic yuppie who comments unwaveringly at theCICAK. Visit his site.
CHUAN ZUI is a graphic artist for theCICAK.
Zui is almost an Otaku but hates big-chested anime characters. He is a twisted weirdo because of his islander kiasuness, a result of living his early childhood in Singapore. Zui is an artist of few words. Visit his site.
If you liked this article, here are some related posts:
Responses || Discussion || Debates || Commentaries
Post your opinion
Does your comment encourage responsible, intelligent discussion?
All comments are moderated for impersonations and defamatory, racially, sexually and religiously offensive content.
By the way... since you're sharing your comments, get paid for it.
- The rise of left-wing politics in Malaysia
- Fuel price hike in Malaysia: Bane or blessing?
- Malaysia’s first LGBT weblog
- Kick the overspending, underachieving habit, Malaysia
- The best thing Pak Lah has done: Drastic reduction of petrol subsidies
- FFF2008 announces competition winners!
- Different races all loving each other?
- Part 2, Analyzing Malaysian Parties: Should DAP compromise its principles?
- Why I’m for Tibet being part of China, and against the Chinese Communist Party’s actions
- Is Islam, Judaism and Christianity still relevant today?
Subscribe via RSS
Latest News
Register to receive the best articles, comments, and competitions in your inbox!
Part 1: Creating a new manifesto for Malaysia
Malaysia has a government that treats the constitution as nothing more than the toilet paper that adorns your bathrooms. They run roughshod on it, treating it like joke, a document of whimsy and games. Thus, as a result...Young Malaysians, here are ten steps to become better citizens
A very basic list of things that twenty-something’s can do as citizens.The hunt for subversives: Malaysian Government arrest Bersih, Hindraf activists and lawyers
Does the "Malaysian way" condone detention without trial, arbitrary arrests, tear gas, water cannons, violence and lies?Adultery does not justify battery
How far would you go if your lover cheated on you? Be honest.
Comment of the week
I defend my right as a Malaysian to talk about anything that concerns Malaysia.
Powered by FireStats
I know nothing much about Islam but I see the reason why we should be concerned over such issues. As followers or believers of a certain religion, we do not want our faith to be misunderstood by others just because some religious authorities choose to be impractical and stereotypical. It’s not hard to see why Muslims around the world denounce terrorism which grossly twisted the true image of the religion.
Was this a good comment?
Religion has widely been overrated and wrongly used by certain parties to gain popularity. Many people tend to follow rumors and simply stereotype the situation without even bothering to acknowledge the situation. What worse is they tend to look at one angle of perspective in some cases, look up straightly for the government-filtered media and refer to the certain politician whom are foremost very so-called religious. Then, they wouldn’t bother to qualify any situation and would rather shoot out their anger without knowing the truth.
In Islam, several of the sign have appeared. Misleading religious leaders is partially one part of it. There isn’t such thing as liberalism in Islam as Islam has been a religion of peace, which unfortunately been miss-leaded by the significant so-called leaders, thus created a outmaneuvered the leftover group of modern Islam into a liberal person.
Was this a good comment?
EXCELLENT, Aput. I’ve always felt that the one thing we have going for us in the United States that will prevent ourselves from falling into terminal unhappiness is the separation of church and state. Although this has been eroded/muddled in many cases, for the most part, it’s saving our butts when it comes to our sense of National Pride. Religion of any kind has no place in politics, nor does it have a place in telling women what to wear, imo. It’s a personal choice. You cannot have real freedom without the separation of church and state. And there are so many examples of how this is true all over the world, it’s astonishing to me that more countries haven’t figured it out yet. Religion has become a tool for control in so many places, not personal growth.
Was this a good comment?
What would you recommend, as a Muslim, to change the mindset of your fellow brothers or maybe to suggest a reform in a religion that takes different forms in different people?
Was this a good comment?
well said. i wish… more people can see from your perspective.
Was this a good comment?
Thank you eWe (thank goodness I’m not talking to you in person, cause those three words..) for raising that question.
The thing about religion and tolerance has to do with education. The reason why we’re seeing a conservative monopoly in Islam is because they are viewed as the educated ones. But the thing is, that’s what they are doing with religion that is so wrong.
They are monopolizing it, to the point that they can simply go out and say that those who don’t agree with me are against Allah.
You’d think the Dark Ages were so 1950’s, but the truth is that they were more open about religion then than they are now. Actually no, they were less judgmental in religious issues than they are now.
So first of all, know the religion. Start with the basics, such as the practices of the Muslim. Read up on women’s rights in Islam, one of which being the right to be in charge of your own life, without persecution from idiots like JAIS.
But also, know your rights as a citizen, though if you’re a Muslim our Federal Constitution basically has a tight clause on our actual freedoms.
Know the religious laws of your state. This one may be tough because I can’t find a single website which has the State’s Sharia Law book, so you might be better off reading some paperback book on general laws of Sharia.
Take an interest in other religions, and be open to their thoughts. Not that I’m actually encouraging you to go read the Bible, but ask them about their religion in general. What’s All Souls Day, perhaps? What is Lent? What the heck’s a tithe?
Why tie a red ribbon at your gate if your Chinese neighbor is having a wake?
You’ll find that we have a lot more in common that you know, or at least you’ll be more culturally aware.
Answer questions about Islam and clarify the misunderstandings that they have about our way of life. One of them being the need for Muslims to actually wash their asses with water, instead of using toilet paper. We can actually use toilet papers as well. Just that some nutter decided to waste water instead of trees. Think it’s a SYABAS led conspiracy.
Vincent? Where are you…? Hope the above answers one of your older grouses in your blog.
And finally, stop, please stop blaming the Jews for everything that is f*cked up about you life. Trust me, the Jewish religion is hardly to be blamed for you indulging in a 12 ringgit cup of coffee, or a 9 ringgit fast food meal, or even the makeup you wear.
That’s not Jewish propaganda, people! That’s you indulging in your sins.
Was this a good comment?
Ooops…I already did idol worship a thousand times by wishing my Hindu friends Happy Diwali….
OMG! I just did khalwat with 3 non mahram women at the same time, by being with them alone in an enclosed area of my office.
Drat!!! I am an Indian citizen, and hence I can’t vote for PAS, hence I am an apostate.
Was this a good comment?
perhaps the author is also misrepresenting Islam. not only that, he seems to misrepresent the issue. he’s kinda selective, only choosing to hit on fundamentalists. other groups also misrepresent islam to support their position.
how do you represent islam? by not representing islam, it seems, by the looks of this article.
Was this a good comment?
Perhaps what Kaki Bangku wishes to point out the fact that I don’t mention the over liberalized version of Islam. The thing is that misrepresentation does not harm anyone physically, nor does it slanders anyone.
Perhaps Kaki Bangku would like to look into that?
Perhaps I should bring up the issues of overfeminism in Islam, to the point where some justify that women can lead men in prayer. Perhaps I should bring up the issue with people who think homosexuality is acceptable in Islam.
Then there are those who drink and have premarital sex and do drugs…
Is this all religious issues, or personal and social belief issues that people try to use religion to justify or denounce?
For me, I think these are personal issues that Islam, as a way of life, certainly affects. But at the same time, how religious is the person in question?
Can you be a homophobic nut yet still justify skipping a daily prayer or not paying the zakat?
Can you justify spreading slanderous thoughts of women who dress revealingly while you quietly condone masturbation and the viewing of pornographic materials?
Can you justify going for Friday prayers every Friday afternoon, yet not being able to wake up for the morning prayer, and go out and scold others for drinking, doing drugs and having sex?
The Koran continually tells us to take care of the orphans, conduct our prayer and respect others. This is the message that is found throughout the holy book, in every chapter.
Yet we focus on why homosexuality is a sin because of Lot, how we should herd our women into trucks for dressing inappropriately, and we post videos on Youtube because it shames them and makes it an example to make others live in fear.
Kaki Bangku, you can look at the liberal side and justify their wrongs. I look more at the conservatives because they are abusing the religion, and making it become more irrelevant to the younger generation.
Was this a good comment?
I’m a young Muslim woman and I’m disheartened indeed at the way Islam is used to justify all kinds of bigotry and ignorance, especially towards women, HIV-infected people, ethnic minorities and the LGBT community (gays, lesbians, bisexual and transgendered people). This kind of thing shakes my faith and leaves me jaded and feeling powerless and angry.
Was this a good comment?
Aput
The dilemma you’re presenting is very human and not religious. You said that Muslims should be interested in other religions, but how would the community take that? Maybe it’ll be welcomed in the city, but not in rural towns or kampungs with all the Lina Joys cases and Muslim converts.
Not only that, Malay = Muslim = true Malaysian. This forms an identity crisis to a Malay. You are born into a religion which you may or may not accept, and therefore would probably have little to no interest at all. Even for Christians, Buddhists, Hindus, and etc. this proves to either form for good or for bad.
So when you talk about freedom, what freedom is there in your religion if you’re not allowed to choose it? I speak to this from an outsider’s point of view. Definitely, I too would like my family to adopt similar beliefs but in my religion, my family isn’t under obligation to pursue my beliefs.
I see many humans that when choosing their own way of life, have higher interest in it, than someone who is forced into it. So when you are asking your fellow brothers to take more interest and awareness into a religion which they seemingly know little of, wonder whether it is simply a religion to them or a true awareness and a real pursuit.
And yes, education plays a strong part. But I implore you to look from it outside of emotion and think of this problem objectively. Clearly, Islam isn’t the only religion facing differing opinions of what is real and what is not. In America, Christians are even worse at times.
So when replying to people like Kaki Bangku, maybe have an empathetic view. I don’t know your background, but usually religious extremists have their own reasons for enforcing seemingly ‘absurd’ opinions. And we need to find middle ground.
I basically find it absurd that in the Middle east, women are forced to cut their clitoris off but maybe it made a whole lot of sense a long time ago.
Was this a good comment?
I have nothing much to say about the article - but I kinda wanna ask about the cool picture:
Is God handing the people a divine lollipop?
Was this a good comment?
When doctors harm ppl; with their decisions, they can b sued for malpractise. So i guess Muslims should have d right to sue any religious leaders when their conclusions harm ppl.
Was this a good comment?