Call on the Minister of Education to reverse the decision to make Islamic Civilisation (Tamadun Islam) a compulsory subject for private universities
In my question dated 8th July 2013, I asked the Minister of Education whether the subject Tamadun Islam (Islamic Civilization) will be made a compulsory subject in the private universities (Instituti Pangajian Tinggi Swasta, IPTS) as part of the requirement to be accredited by the Malaysia Qualification Agency (MQA).
In his answer to me, the minister confirmed that the Ministry of Education has indeed made it a compulsory subject to be accredited by the Malaysia Qualification Agency. According to him, Tamadun Islam is already a compulsory subject in public universities (Institusi Pengajian Tinggi Awam, IPTA) and it is to standardize the requirement. This will take effect from 1st September 2013.
The question is why is it only for the local students and not the overseas students? Obviously this has nothing to do with the courses and the degrees awarded at the end. So if it is not compulsory for overseas students, why is it compulsory for local students? Why is it compulsory for non-Muslim students?
It is indeed surprising. If you look at the leading universities in the world, no study related to a religion is made a compulsory subject. How would this improve one’s studies to be a doctor, a lawyer or an engineer? Why would this be necessary here in Malaysia?
If we are trying to improve the ranking of our universities. We should concentrate on research publications. In that way we can increase the citation index of the universities and the prestige. The undergraduates should spend more time in the laboratories learning and acquiring the experimental skills necessary. We should emphasize more on research methodology and paper publication.
It is also baffling. Our Muslim students entering the universities would have been familiar with Tamadun Islam before from the primary and secondary schools. Not to say from their parents and the mosques. So why is there a need for them to do that in the universities?
For the non-Muslims, why is it necessary for them to study Tamadun Islam? They would have been well brought up in their respective religious background and have a solid foundation in their moral teachings. It is guaranteed in our Federal Constitution that non-Muslims have the freedom of professing and practice of their religion (Article 11). Article 12 (3) provides that “No person shall be required to receive instructions in or of a religion other than his own”. Therefore, non-Muslims should not be compelled to learn about Islam.
The fact that the Ministry of Education can decide and dictate which subjects to be made compulsory meant this is a political decision rather than an academic one. Hence politics is interfering with the needs of our children’s education. We strongly urge the Minister of Education to reverse the ruling and let the individual universities decide on the needs of their courses.
