Saturday, December 31, 2011

Malaysia: Christian leader may be charged with sedition for criticizing supremacist article in constitution

From Jihad Watch:


Malaysia: Christian leader may be charged with sedition for criticizing supremacist article in constitution







The constitution defines Malays as Muslims in one fell swoop (Article 160 (2)). For a Christian to criticize Malay supremacism as enshrined in Article 153 is to criticize Islamic supremacism. Therefore, this Christian leader is in trouble twice: for defying his second-class status as a non-Malay, and all the more for defying his second-class status as a non-Muslim.



"Christian Malay leader could be charged with sedition," by Michael Ireland for Assist News Service, December 30 (thanks to Twostellas):



An evangelical Christian leader in Malaysia may face charges of sedition following a statement he made about a section of the country's constitution this past weekend.



TheMalaysianinsider.com reports Datuk Ibrahim Ali, leader of the Perkasa movement, saying that in order to safeguard national security, Malaysian authorities must charge with sedition those who question Article 153 of the constitution - as he claims Christian leader Rev Dr Eu Hong Seng did on Christmas Day.



"We demand the government use the Sedition Act on anyone who makes statements like this from now on and charge them in court," the Perkasa chief told reporters December 27.



Ibrahim Ali was referring to a statement made on Saturday by National Evangelical Christian Fellowship (NECF) chairman Eu, who likened Article 153 to "bullying" for only protecting the rights of one group.



According to the newspaper story, Article 153 of the Malay Constitution states that it is the king's responsibility "to safeguard the special position of the Malays and natives of any of the States of Sabah and Sarawak and the legitimate interests of other communities in accordance with the provisions of this Article".



Calling Eu's statement "irresponsible provocation", Ibrahim said use of the Sedition Act would deter further attempts to question the provision and preserve racial harmony.



Disputing the article would only lead to civil strife as it was part and parcel of an established social contract that could not be amended without consent from the Malay rulers, he said.



The Malay rights leader also cautioned Christians against repeating statements similar to Eu's in light of past controversies like the Damansara Utama Methodist Church (DUMC) raid earlier this year, as this would only give the impression that Christians wished to make enemies of Muslims.....



Posted by Marisol on December 31, 2011 12:10 AM

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