In parliament yesterday, replying to a question by Seremban MP John Fernandez, Minister in the PM’s Department, Nazri Aziz, according to Malaysiakini, stressed that we are not a secular state and stopped short of declaring Malaysia to be an Islamic state.
In 2001, his then boss, Mahathir, did not stop short.
He declared Malaysia to be an Islamic country.
Then, MCA and Gerakan acquiesced to this by their total silence.
Six years later, Nazri’s present boss, then only DPM, was reported by Malaysiakini to have declared Malaysia to be an Islamic state, and not secular.
Again, where were MCA and Gerakan.
I reproduce here what I wrote then.
“Have you not read the Reid Commission report, that document that bears testimony to the selfless work of our leaders of days gone by?
Tun Salleh Abas did, in extenso, in the case of Che Omar Che Soh. I have referred to this in an earlier post entitled ‘Historical and Constitutional Position of Islam Judicially Examined’
Let me reproduce for you here the relevant excerpt from Tun Salleh’s judgment.
‘…we have to set aside our personal feelings because the law in this country is still what it is today, secular law, where morality not accepted by the law is not enjoying the status of law. Perhaps that argument should be addressed at other forums or at seminars and, perhaps, to politicians and Parliament. Until the law and the system is changed, we have no choice but to proceed as we are doing today.”
Do you know what Tunku’s view was on this secular / Islamic state issue?
See what Tunku said on the occasion of his 80th birthday as reported by the Star in February, 1983.
Tunku said :
‘The country has a multi-racial population with various beliefs. Malaysia must continue as a secular State with Islam as the official religion’.
Tunku was not alone.
This is how the report in the Star reads :
‘Former Prime Minister Tun Hussein Onn has supported Tunku Abdul Rahman’s view that Malaysia should not be turned into an islamic state…”The nation can still be functional as a secular state with Islam as the offical religion,” he said’
So, Nazri, go stick your head up an elephant’s arse!
Kit Siang, who was in parliament then, I supposed had to reply and said much of what I had said in 2007.
And today, FMT, it would seem, has taken the lead in trumpeting that Pakatan is divided on this ‘secular or Islamic?’ issue.
Read that FMT report and tell me if I have missed something, because I do not see any great divide between the Pakatan reps quoted in that report.
Tony Pua thought Nazri was talking through his rear, but put it more politely.
Nurul hit the nail on the head, and I pray that the other Pakatan leaders will take a leaf from her.
Nurul is reported to have said that ‘BN had always used the secular state and Islamic state argument to confuse the masses for its own political advantage‘.
“I think it’s a bait. As far as we are concerned, we will continue to uphold and respect all that is enshrined in the constitution” , said Nurul.
Smart lady.
PM material, this.
Khalid Samad said this matter ought not to be debated now as it would be politicised.
PM material, too, if you ask me.
I suspect John Fernandez question must have collected dust in the chambers of the parliamentary clerks only to be listed now to enable Nazri to resurrect this issue so as to, as Nurul put it, bait the Pakatan leaders into another round of internal bickering and controversy and to lend the mainstream media fodder to spin this into an issue.
Well, from the FMT report above, it would seem fodder for some online portals, too.
Remember Mahathir agitating Tok Guru last year about implementing hudud in Kelantan?
And Anwar’s response to media question relating to this issue precipitating a crisis in Pakatan soon after?
I touched on this in my “Will they never learn?” post.
FMT has been quick today to report Gerakan’s Baljit urging Guan Eng to pass an anti-Hudud law.
Guan Eng, please ignore this political has-been.
Please.
And all you Pakatan leaders, please heed the words of your young colleague.
80% of the rakyat are feeling the effects of the price of essentials sky-rocketing.
And many are concerned if the state of indebtedness of the nation will bring us to a state of bankruptcy.
Please do not be distracted away from the real issues that confront the nation.
Paul Warren
October 23, 2012
Actually more than this we should now be concerned more about the admission that Mahathir was inspired by Hitler’s Nazi reign. It would seem like UMNO borrows a lot more from Nazi Germany’s policies and actions than it does from Adam Smith or Keynes, Lincoln or Gandhi.
bigjoe99
October 23, 2012
For practical purpose, the issue of the messed up Judiciary is more important that what Nazri is talking about. The issue of the mythology – the national education system that don’t teach the true history of our country particularly the constitutional history is more important.
And when it comes to avoiding Hudud, there is nothing more important than Reform – fixing the corruption, abuse of power, the mismanagement to stop it.
Discussion about the constitution is only so emotional for the opposition because we have so little faith in our judiciary and our education system..
Wake-up call
October 23, 2012
Obviously, BN are trying to stir up the ever sensitive issues of Race n Religion. Oppositions shld strongly rebut n then move on n stop dragging the issues as BN have the ulterior motive of trapping them into saying the wrong things. Bn hv no other relevants issues to harp on as they expect oppositions to continue bringing up wrong doings of ruling government.This is pure diversion. No right thinking people will ever buy their (BN) their stories.
Another Anak Bangsa Malaysia
October 23, 2012
Haris,
As far as I know Malaysia is a secular country.
As mentioned elsewhere, it is most likely Nazri et al are playing to a Muslim audience.
I am glad there are champions of a free and secular Malaysia in people like yourself and others. Thank you for speaking out for people like me.
More power to you, Haris Ibrahim.
Taipan
October 23, 2012
Chameleon is best used to describe these Umno goons. What goes in between those ears are all about money and sex. Short of being lawmakers we hear of more lawbreakers instead. If Umno cannot decide what is a secular or Islamic state then there is only one way to describe Malaysia…..a bankrupt state!
Taikohtai
October 24, 2012
Malaysia under BN is on shaky grounds. Their platform is old and way past its used-by-date and suffers tremendously from system weaknesses. Hence not a day passes without some smart ass BN pollies punching the air, bellowing some scary sh*t! Nazri is the latest, playing on religious nonsense. A few days ago, MCA were up in arms against hudud, something RPK said they know nuts about. Now TDM jumps into the foray, decrying his own ‘Anti-Jew’ banking policies. Even Bung refuses to stay neutral, decrying the monopolistic overloading by BN on 1MoneyLaunderingtzar Syed Mokhtar.
I believe BN knows their goose is cooked come GE, however long they try to delay it. Can one believe that BN actually expect their salted fish to start doing backstroke, butterfly, breaststroke and freestyle when struck by another Tsunami? There’s only one stroke that I guarantee: Bellyup Dive BNStyle!
Tan Leong Seng
October 24, 2012
Suggest all to read Prof Mohd Asri views on this. Whether Malaysia is branded as a secular or islamic state is not important. More important are the values the leaders and the people profess and carry. It is a ploy by the rats with vested interests to divert our attention from the more pressing and real issues like corruption, abuse of power, high national debt and how the country is going to manage the impact from the financial fiascos in the US and Europe.
bigjoe99
October 26, 2012
Mohd Asri point is that the Islamic label is not carte-blanche..I disagree with the view Islamic label not important. In this country. who Malays are, its important. Its just that the real danger is to make assumption about what it means.
Tunku was a man who gambled, drank and most likely a few other not so Islamic private behavior but was also deeply spiritual Muslim and was the one who wanted the label “Islam the official religion”. He was a renaissance man and wanted Malays to be renaissance people in Islamic world. That means not making assumption with the Islamic label but insisting on the Islamic label..
The idea of secularity and Islamic are exclusive started in failing states of India-Pakistan where the first drew inspiration from failing Ottoman Empire, later Iran, another failing state, put their stamp on it. Go talk to older Lebanese and Turkish who still remember and they will tell you its not ancient history of Muslims..
shakuntala
October 24, 2012
It is important , Mr Tan Leong Seng who are what we are….our identity. as a Nation state. We are secular according to our once sacred Constitution which has been medled with to suit ends without the Rakyat’s consent.
The Constitution is in itself a very valuable instrument, ours no longer can be regarded as such.
……
JimmyKL
October 24, 2012
To categorize Malaysia either as secular state or Islamic state one have to look at the conduct and practice of the state. What ever Reid Commission or Tunku or Tun Salleh Abbas or Dr. Asri said is rather immaterial (even though influential) because what they said is a mere saying which contain their interpretation and their aspiration on what the state of Malaysia should be. As such, one should differentiate between what some important personalities have said and what is the real practice of the state as an enforcement institution.
From the practice of the state, Malaysia obviously neither secular nor theocratic state. It is not secular simply because there exist religious enforcement institutions which can legitimately enforce its religious values, morals and mores on its Muslim population. Furthermore in Malaysia the state can and have used tax payers money to finance religious (Islamic) activities such as building mosque and surau, allocating budget for Islamic religious schools, paying emoluments for Islamic religious teachers, administering all Islamic religious bureaucracy in all 13 states and 3 federal territories and etc. etc.
These practices of the state (enforcement of values, morals and mores and utilisation of tax payers money for Islamic religious purposes) are for Muslims and Islam only and no other religion and religious communities are given the same treatment by the state. Therefore the state in Malaysia is inherently not neutral in religious matters. In fact, in Malaysia the state sided with Islam and put Islam above other religion, hence Federal Constitution proclaim that Islam is the only official religion of the federation (article 3) and no other religions are allowed to do proselytizing except Islam (article 11).
By legitimizing these conduct, Federal Constitution have given consent for the state to directly interfere in Islamic religious realm as well as having power to determine the type of Islamic faith that its Muslim citizens should have. In short, Islam, the Muslims in Malaysia, Islamic institutions and bureaucracy are directly under the control of the state. These type of control and direct interference by the state means there is no separation between state and religion for Muslim citizen in this country. As such, it is the actual practice of the state itself (sanctioned by Federal Constitution) that determine the nature of Malaysian state which is not secular.
While Malaysia is neither secular state it is also not a theocratic state simply because Quran and Sunnah, the two primary sources of Shariah law are not the highest law of the land.
At best, Malaysia is a quasi-secular, quasi-Islamic state where certain section of its population (the Muslims which are the majority of its population) are still governed by some form of Shariah law in matters of faith, sexuality, personal conduct and family law while others (the non-muslim) are govern by civil law.
Considering the actual conduct and practices of the state that I have mentioned above, is Malaysia still a secular state? I doubt it and it can never be secular as long as there is no clear separation between religion and state. As it is now religion (Islam) in all 13 states and 3 Federal Territories are still under the power and control of the state. Even if Pakatan come to power, religion (Islam) in this country can never be totally separated from the state because culturally and historically Islam have been part of this Malay polity since 12th century.
Nevertheless one thing that is obvious now is that the state in Malaysia is a corrupt state and we all have the responsibility and obligation to change it! Ubah Sekarang!
annabrlla
November 4, 2012
Hello Haris.
First, I would like to wish a good fellow ABM a belated but happy Eid al-Adha.
Secondly, I am heartened to see that you are still keeping up the tough spirited good fight for a Malaysia in distress.
Thirdly, I take the liberty to provide my answers to your questions posed here:
1. Secular state? Yes, always has been and always will be in reality.
2. Islamic state? No, never has been and never will be in any reality.
3. Near-bankrupt state? Probably and certainly will go bankrupt if BN is not kicked out.
One more perhaps obvious question from me:
4. Corrupt state? Yes, most certainly, and infested to the hilt of power with lying, hypocritical and self-serving politickers without any shred of principle whatsoever!
“Imagine Power To The People” John Lennon.