After ‘Allah’ rebuff, Karpal demands de-registration of Muslim lawyers group
GEORGE TOWN, Nov 5 — DAP chairman Karpal Singh said today all religious and race-based professional or political bodies should be de-registered, singling out the Muslim Lawyers Association (MLA) as an example.
The vocal politician said the MLA should not have been allowed to be formed in the first place as the existing Bar Council was already an adequate professional body that represents all lawyers in the country.
“The Bar Council represents all lawyers in the country, the government should not allow a professional body to operate based on religious lines such as the MLA,” he said in a press conference at Air Itam here today.
He said MLA’s registration should be revoked, insisting it was a serious matter that Muslim lawyers are allowed to form separate associations based on religion.
“We don’t want a situation where others want to do the same, we don’t want a Hindu Lawyers Association or a Buddhist Lawyers Association,” he said.
The Bukit Gelugor MP claimed that even Muslim lawyers do not support MLA as it was purportedly an association set up by just a handful of troublemakers.
His criticisms against MLA today come in light of the association’s recent threat against the Malaysian Bar Council when it warned the body against backing Catholic weekly Herald’s appeal against the Court of Appeal ruling that banned it from using the word “Allah”.
MLA president Datuk Zainul Rijal Abu Bakar had cautioned the Bar Council against taking a partisan stand in the spat that is deepening a gulf in multi-religious Malaysia.
He reminded the Bar Council that the majority of its members were Muslims, and stressed that the views of a “few scattered Muslim members” in support of the Church did not represent the sentiments of its mainstream that number in the “thousands”.
“The Muslim Lawyers Association, whose considerable members are also members of the Malaysian Bar, wholeheartedly supports the decision of the Court of Appeal.
“Our Association strongly oppose [sic] any partisan action by the Bar Council over the issue,” he said in a statement.
“The Bar Council should lodge a police report against MLA for issuing this threat and not be intimidated by them,” he said.
Responding yesterday, the Bar Council urged the authorities to stop turning a blind eye to threats after a Muslim law group warned it against backing the Catholic Church’s court appeal for the right to call God “Allah”.
Council president Christopher Leong also stressed that the Malaysian Bar and the Bar Council are secular bodies that are not partial to any religious beliefs.
“It unfortunately appears that some parties or segments of our society deem it appropriate to resort to issuing threats or fear-mongering as a means of getting their way,” Leong said in a statement today.
“The Malaysian authorities for their part should cease pandering to, or legitimising such practices, as it only serves to encourage those who resort to threats or violence as a means of getting their way or silencing others. Such behaviour also seeks to stifle discourse, growth and understanding,” he added.
Apart from the MLA, Karpal added today that all other political and professional bodies that operate along religious or racial lines should also be de-registered.
“Such organisations operating along religious and racial lines is dangerous for a multi-racial society and a threat to unity,” he said.
“Unfortunately, this includes PAS but they have taken the first step by setting up a unit for non-Muslim supporters,” he said.
This means Umno, MCA and MIC, and all Barisan Nasional (BN) component parties that are race-based, should also be de-registered, he said.
On whether this was against freedom of association, Karpal said freedom of association doesn’t mean racist associations can be set up as there should be certain limits in place.
