MALAYSIA
Kelantan Mufti warns non-Muslims in state against using Allah
The Mufti of Kelantan has warned non-Muslims in the state who use Allah in their worship that they could face action under the Control and Restriction of the Propagation of Non-Islamic Religions Enactment 1981.
Datuk Mohamad Shukri Mohamad said non-Muslims have to face the consequences if they still insisted on using Allah, as Malaysia had laws that had to be followed.
"We in Kelantan have our own enactment. For a long time, the enactment has prohibited non-Muslims from using Allah. The enactment is for the civil court, not Shariah," Utusan Malaysia reported today.
"So we leave it to the authorities to act on those who break the law. Those who are rational will understand the consequences," Shukri added.
He was responding to a statement from the Christian Federation of Malaysia (CFM) chairman, Rev Dr Eu Hong Seng, who said Christians would continue to use Allah in worship and prayers.
Shukri did not rule out the possibility of a backlash from Muslims if non-Muslims continued to use the word Allah.
"It is a possibility, something that we don't want to happen,” he warned.
On Monday, a three-man bench which allowed Putrajaya’s appeal to reverse a High Court ruling that the Herald could use the word, said the word Allah was not an integral part of the Christian faith and practice.
The court said it saw no reason why the church was so adamant in wanting to use the word Allah. It also said that such usage, if allowed, would cause confusion within the Malaysian community, adding that the welfare of an individual or group must concede to the majority community. - October 17, 2013.
