This is a joke. A minister’s call to the AG chambers urging it to re-look the case involving Perkasa chief, Ibrahim Ali’s, threat to burn Bibles is alleged to be seditious by the Malay rights group.
It’s almost as if which camp one belongs to determines if whatever the person says is seditious or not. If you are aligned with the ruling political party UMNO, then it’s all dandy and you could get away with spewing venom.
Perkasa’s Islamic Affairs Bureau chief Shamsuddin Moner said Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department, Joseph Kurup, should not be a Christian extremist.
If we go by his skewed logic, the call to burn Bibles is not extremism. But the request to re-look at the Attorney General’s decision, that Ibrahim Ali’s remark was not intended to cause harm but was aimed at protecting the sanctity of Islam, is.
Kurup’s request, made in Parliament, is crucial as the AG’s shocking decision has further strained relations between the Muslims and Christians in the country.
It’s important the AG chambers maintain its credibility. Here, however, the decision to let Ibrahim Ali off the hook reeks of double standards.
And more so when an academic and law professor, Azmi Sharom, is charged with sedition for his legal opinion.
Furthermore the AG’s decision is confusing as one wonders as to how the call to burn Bibles can be fashioned to mean protecting Islam.
In direct contrast, it would only serve to tarnish the good name of Islam, which accords equal rights to all, including minorities.
And former Prime Minister, Dr Mahathir Mohamad’s, rather hastily put together explanation that old Bibles could be burned just like old copies of the Al Quran is absurd.
The issue here is not about destroying holy books. It’s about the inherent right of everyone to practice their religion without fear.
And Kurup was only suggesting the AG chambers take another look at its decision to ensure this right is met.