Jais-DUMC row by Dr Ng Kam Weng

This is another interesting opinion penned by Dr Ng Kam Weng taken from The Malaysian Insider. (Click on title for original source)

* Dr Ng Kam Weng is research director at the Kairos Research Centre (Click on Name to link)

Jais-DUMC row: Sultan not properly informed — Dr Ng Kam Weng

OCT 12 — The Christian community has waited with anticipation for DYMM Sultan of Selangor to come out with a statement that will help resolve the inter-religious crisis sparked off by the Selangor Islamic Religious Department (Jais) raid on Damansara Utama Methodist Church on August 3, 2011.

We welcome the Sultan’s wish that religious harmony should continue in the state and his decree that there be no prosecution against any of the parties involved.

However, the Sultan’s statement does raise a few issues of serious concern for the non-Muslim community as there are views expressed therein that suggest that the Sultan may not have been properly informed by his advisers.

First, the statement suggests that “the actions of Jais were correct and did not breach any laws enforceable in Selangor,” as they “are in line with the jurisdiction provided under Syariah Criminal Procedure (State of Selangor) Enactment (2003), Syariah Criminal (State of Selangor) Enactment, 1995 and the Selangor Non-Islamic Religions (Control of Propagation Amongst Muslims) Enactment of 1988” (herein referred to as the “Selangor Enactment”)

With all due respect, I beg to differ from this interpretation of the state enactments. In the first place, the jurisdiction granted by Article 11(4) of the Federal Constitution was to permit the state to control or restrict the propagation of religion among people professing to be Muslims. This must be read in the context of the Article itself which fundamentally provides for every person the freedom to profess, practice and propagate his religion.

Such power to control or restrict propagation cannot be understood as absolutely prohibiting any conduct or activity on the excuse of some unspecified complaint that they are for the purposes of propagation of religion. Such power cannot be taken as licence for officials to intrude or trespass into a function conducted within the premises of what is clearly a non-Muslim religious institution (in the present case a Christian institution) without legal authority

There is no legal provision under the Propagation Enactment that allows Jais officials to intrude into the premises of DUMC, much less carry out a raid. From my reading of the Selangor Enactment (1988), the closest possible justification that can be offered by Jais are Sections 12 and 13, which specify that “an authorised officer may investigate the commission of any offence under this Enactment and may arrest without warrant any person suspected of having committed any such offence.”

He may also apply for warrants of arrest from a Magistrate to require the attendance of witnesses. There is, however, simply no unilateral power to carry out an entry and search under the Propagation Enactment or for that matter even to apply for a search warrant.

If the officer responsible for the raid intends to conduct an entry and search, he must base his power from some legal source. Jais officers appear to have acted under Syariah Enactment that does NOT apply, however, to non-Muslims and cannot be imported into the Propagation Enactment.

While superficially this provision seems to grant disturbing power to this “authorised officer”, the enforcement must be consistent with the more fundamental provisions under Part II of the Federal Constitution relating to fundamental liberties and the provisions of the Criminal Procedure Code (Act 593) relating to search and arrest which presumes that a search warrant should have been sought as a matter of course, and that the warrant is granted only upon reasonable suspicion that a seizable offence has been committed at the DUMC premises. The requirement of a search warrant is a fundamental recognition of the right to privacy within one’s own domain and space.

More importantly, given the sensitivity of inter-religious relations and the sanctity of religious places of worship, such a warrant should be granted only by a magistrate or judge from the Civil Court and only upon firm and clear grounds.

The fact remains that Jais carried out the raid with disregard for established provisions and procedure of law — the leader of the Jais party failed to present relevant identity documents to confirm he was indeed “an authorised officer”, specify the offence(s) or suspected offence(s) relating to propagation under the Selangor Enactment that was alleged to have been committed and that he had obtained a search warrant from a Magistrate or the High Court, especially when a church was the target of the raid. For these reasons, it may be argued contrary to the Sultan’s statement, that prima facie, Jais had not acted lawfully within the bounds of law when it raided DUMC.

Second, it should be noted that the statement claims “there were attempts to subvert the faith and belief of Muslims but that the evidence obtained would be insufficient for further legal actions to be taken.”

The plural word “attempts” suggests Christians at DUMC were guilty of subverting Islam not only on August 3, 2011, but that they were repeatedly committing the alleged offence. This is a most unfair and misleading accusation that imputes guilt to DUMC without offering any evidence that could be verified or refuted.

It may be noted that the English version of the Sultan’s statement uses stronger words than the official Bahasa version — it translates the word “memesongkan (distort, deviate) fahaman dan kepercayaan fahaman orang Islam” with the word “subvert the faith and belief of Muslims”

The statement unwittingly exposes the feeble foundations of its accusations when it concedes that there was insufficient evidence obtained for further legal action. In simple terms, this must means that Jais had FAILED to make a prima facie case against DUMC.

I may add that despite the attempt to hide behind the legal term of “insufficient evidence”, the reality is that there was simply NO evidence of subversion of the Islamic faith. Beating a hasty retreat from the threat of prosecuting DUMC was the best option left for Jais.

Third, it is alarming that the statement describes the activities of DUMC as subversion of the Islamic faith. This charge is injurious to the integrity of Christians with regard to their profession and practice of faith.

Regarding integrity of profession of the Christian faith: Christians at DUMC have never pretended to be teaching any religion other than Christianity. DUMC is, after all, a church. Christians have every right to uphold their beliefs and practice their faith and while doing so, should not be judged as subverting or deviating /“memesongkan fahaman” Islamic beliefs on account of the doctrinal differences between the two religions. Following the logic of Jais, Christians could equally have charged Muslims for subverting the Christian faith when Muslims preach a faith different from Christians.

Regarding practice of faith: Christians are well known for their social work that flows from their belief in the love of God for the poor and needy. As the Bible says, “Religion that is pure and undefiled before God the Father, is this: to visit orphans and widows in their affliction and to keep oneself unstained from the world” (James 1:27). Hence, the press statement from DUMC says, “DUMC conducts all its activities to serve the community and for the welfare of all Malaysians regardless of creed, race or religion.”

It is therefore alarming when Jais casts aspersions against the charity work done by Christians and claims that Christians are subverting Islamic beliefs on account of their good works. It may well be the case that some needy Muslims have availed themselves to the good services offered by DUMC, and DUMC obviously cannot turn them away simply because they happen to be Muslims.

DUMC may well be charged for promoting religious disharmony if it makes religion a factor before anyone can receive welfare. On the other hand, Christians may well be advised to stop their work that may incline a Muslim to view the Christian faith favourably since this would incur the wrath of Jais officials.  At best, the Sultan’s statement can be misconstrued by mischievous parties and exploited to misrepresent the altruistic intention of Christians; at worst, it maligns the welfare work of Christians.

Therefore, we welcome the announcement made by the mentri besar of Selangor, Abdul Khalid Ibrahim, that the Selangor government will set up a special committee to fine-tune the Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) followed by the Selangor Islamic Religious Department (Jais) in handling attempts to proselytise Muslims.

We hope the committee will come up with recommendations that will 1) ensure Jais fully understands and observes the bounds of its authority, that is, that it has no jurisdiction over non-Muslims, and 2) any investigation of non-Muslims leading to intervention by the Islamic authorities should follow a proper procedure and law, including obtaining a search warrant granted by senior judicial officials from a religiously neutral institution such as a Magistrate or a High Court judge.

Otherwise, the government ends up surreptitiously investing illegitimate and excessive authority to Islamic officials over non-Muslims. The consequences will be abuse of power, and insensitive and provocative actions against non-Muslim believers as seen in the case of the Jais raid of DUMC.

We do well to listen respectfully and sympathetically to the appeal from the victim of religious abuse, in this case DUMC, when it says in its media statement, “We sincerely ask that all religious communities and places of worship be treated with utmost respect and not be intruded upon.”

Closure to JAIS-DUMC issue

Finally we see a closure to the issue on the raid conducted by the JAIS officers into DUMC grounds during a thanksgiving dinner held at the latter's premises. We thank God for the decision made by the Sultan of Selangor which provided a definite closure to this unpleasant episode experienced by Pastor Daniel Ho and the congregation of DUMC. 

It cannot be denied that the JAIS-DUMC issue has sparked off a massive uproar in the nation but looking back at the events that had taken place, we see the hand of God at every juncture in this episode. While we cannot speak of the experiences of Pastor Daniel Ho and his congregation but as fellow Christians in this nation, we see the unity among believers of Jesus Christ, coming together to pray for Pastor Daniel Ho and those involved, be it in prayer meetings in churches or small group fellowships and even in the personal prayers of many individuals in their private devotion time. There was a unity in spirit among  Christians from all walks of life and from different Churches in the whole nation, uniting as one and in one spirit, crying out to our Almighty God for wisdom and deliverance.

Not only did this episode see the Churches in Malaysia uniting in prayer, Pastor Daniel Ho was heard saying that he had received encouraging messages and support from Christians from overseas too. So this episode even went global and harnessed the prayer support of Christians abroad.

We believe that God has a greater purpose for our nation of Malaysia and He is uniting the Christians here to band together as one, through various difficulties, so that we will be prepared to fulfill His great Commission as one body - the Universal Church of Jesus Christ. The Churches and the Christians in Malaysia have come out and stood by our fellow Brothers and Sisters in Christ in crisis. 

Jesus said,  “You are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hidden.” (Matthew 5:14).  

Let us continue to shine together for our Lord Jesus Christ.

Coming back to the JAIS-DUMC issue, we have collected some related articles for your reading taken from The Star Online.

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Monday October 10, 2011 

DUMC issue: S'gor Sultan rules no action against parties involved

SHAH ALAM: The Sultan of Selangor has ruled that no group should be prosecuted over a controversial incident on Aug 3 where the Selangor Islamic Affairs Department (Jais) conducted a search on a thanksgiving dinner event held at the Dream Centre Complex belonging to the Damansara Utama Methodist Church (DUMC).

Sultan Sharafuddin Idris Shah also commanded that Jais provide counselling to the Muslims who were present during the dinner which was organised by a non-governmental organisation.

"After carefully deliberating the report by Jais and after obtaining advice from religious authorities and legal experts, we are in agreement that there would be no prosecution against any parties.

"Even so, we command that Jais provide counselling to Muslims who were involved in the said dinner, to restore their belief and faith in the religion of Islam," he said.

Following is the full text of the Sultan's statement Monday:

We, the Head of the Religion of Islam in the State of Selangor, take great concern over the actions by the Enforcement Division of the Selangor Department of the Religion of Islam (Jais) which carried out a search at the Thanksgiving Dinner event which was held at Hall 3, Dream Centre Complex, Section 13, Petaling Jaya on Aug 3, 2011.

We hope that the people of Selangor, regardless of race and religion, do not misconstrue and dispute the actions of Jais before knowing exactly the true facts of the actions taken.

As the State Department responsible for the enforcement of Islamic Laws in the State, Jais has the heavy task of ensuring that the Religion of Islam in Selangor is always protected and given prestige, in line with its position as the Religion of the State of Selangor under Article XLVII of the Laws of the Constitution of Selangor, 1959, as well as the religion of the Federation under Clause (1) Article 3 of the Federal Constitution.

Jais has submitted to Us the full report of the search carried out at the Dream Centre Complex, Section 13, Petaling Jaya as well as the subsequent actions taken by Jais. We have thoroughly read in detail the said report and We are satisfied that the actions of Jais were correct and did not breach any laws enforceable in Selangor.

The actions of Jais are in line with the jurisdiction provided under Syariah Criminal Procedure (State of Selangor) Enactment, 2003, Syariah Criminal (State of Selangor) Enactment, 1995 and Selangor Non-Islamic Religions (Control of Propagation Amongst Muslims) Enactment, 1988.

The Religion of Islam as practiced in Selangor is one of tolerance. Muslims are always encouraged to respect the believers of other religions. However, persons or parties cannot take the opportunity to spread other religions to Muslims. This is in line with Clause (1) and (4) Article 11 of the Federal Constitution and Selangor Non-Islamic Religions (Control of Propagation Amongst Muslims) Enactment, 1988, which prohibits the spread of other religions to Muslims.

Article XLVII of the Laws of the Constitution of Selangor 1959, Clause (1) Article 3 and Clause (1) Article 11 of the Federal Constitution have given the freedom to believers of other religions to practice their beliefs in peace and harmony. This freedom has been practised in harmony in this State. We wish that this harmony, which has existed for a long time, will continue to exist. Protect your rights and religion and do not attempt to subvert the belief and faith of Muslims.

Based on the investigations by Jais, there is evidence that there were attempts to subvert the faith and belief of Muslims but that the evidence obtained would be insufficient for further legal actions to be taken. Therefore, after carefully deliberating the report by Jais and after obtaining advice from religious authorities and legal experts, We are in agreement that there would be no prosecution against any parties.

Even so, We command that Jais provide counselling to Muslims who were involved in the said dinner, to restore their belief and faith in the Religion of Islam. We also command Jais to carry out preaching to Muslims in a more regular and organised manner so that their belief and faith towards Islam is protected and enhanced.

We hope that after this, any and all activities being carried out or which are going to be carried out for the purposes of spreading other religions to Muslims in Selangor must be ceased immediately and no further activities or anything similar to them are carried out in the future.

We, the Head of the Religion of Islam in the State of Selangor, are gravely concerned and extremely offended by the attempts of certain parties to weaken the faith and belief of Muslims in the State of Selangor. We command that Majlis Agama Islam Selangor (Mais) and Jais always conduct thorough observations and to take necessary actions without hesitation in line with the jurisdiction allowed under the law.

We also wish to take this opportunity to thank all parties who were concerned with this issue and to those who have given their cooperation and undivided support to Jais.

H.R.H. Sultan Sharafuddin Idris Shah Alhaj
The Sultan of Selangor

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Wednesday October 12, 2011

DUMC welcomes Sultan of Selangor’s statement

By LOH FOON FONG
foonfong@thestar.com.my

PETALING JAYA: The Damansara Utama Methodist Church welcomes the statement by the Sultan of Selangor that no one would be charged in connection with a Selangor Islamic Religious Department (Jais) search at the church two months ago.

Senior pastor Dr Daniel Ho stressed that activities organised by DUMC were meant to serve the community and welfare of Malaysians regardless of race, creed or religion.

“We sincerely ask that all religious communities and places of worship be treated with the utmost respect and not be intruded upon,” he said.

Dr Ho said the church had worked within the boundaries of law and public order.

“We call on all Malaysians to continue to live in peace, tolerance and harmony. We also call on all Christians to continue to act justly, to love mercy and to walk humbly with God,” he said.

Jais carried out the search during a function, organised by non-governmental organisation Harapan Komuniti, at the Dream Centre Complex belonging to DUMC on Aug 3 following a tip-off about an alleged attempt to proselytise Muslims at the dinner.

On Monday, the Sultan ruled that no group would be prosecuted over the search.

Bar Council chairman Lim Chee Wee said that Malaysians must respect the Federal Constitution which provides for states to control or restrict the propagation of any religious doctrine or belief among Muslims.

However, he voiced concern over the Non-Muslim Enactment which gave wide powers to the relevant officers to arrest, even without warrant, on suspicion that a person has committed an offence.

“The exercise of such powers can be subject to abuse and can constitute a restriction of Malaysians' rights of freedom of assembly and association,” he said.

The Malaysian Consultative Council of Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism, Sikhism and Taoism president Tan Hoe Chieow said it accepted the Sultan's ruling that no group should be prosecuted and that non-Muslims were free to protect their rights and religions.

He said that Jais has no jurisdiction over non-Muslims and due to the sensitivity and sanctity of worship places, they must first lodge a police report if there were cases of proselytising, and the police must obtain a search warrant from the courts to enter religious places of worship.

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Tuesday October 11, 2011

Council of Churches accepts Sultan’s ruling

PETALING JAYA: The Council of Churches Malaysia has accepted the Sultan of Selangor's ruling that no group should be prosecuted over a controversial church search in August.

Its general-secretary Reverend Dr Hermen Shastri said the council took the view that Sultan Sharafuddin Idris Shah had settled the matter.

“We consider the Sultan's statements a closure of the DUMC (Damansara Utama Methodist Church) case,” he said yesterday.

He was commenting on the search conducted by the Selangor Islamic Affairs Department (Jais) during a dinner held at the DUMC Dream Centre on Aug 3.

“In the interests of peace, we hope that people will not speculate about or aggravate the situation further,” he said.

Meanwhile, Selangor Mentri Besar Tan Sri Khalid Ibrahim said a committee would be set up by the state government to study ways to strengthen the Selangor Islamic Affairs Department's (Jais) standard operating procedures.

He said in a statement that the special committee would be headed by legal and religious experts.

Khalid added that Jais should strengthen its administration when conducting religious checks, adding: “This issue only shows that Jais has space for improvement.”

State PAS deputy commissioner Khalid Samad described the Sultan's command to not prosecute any party and to provide counselling to Muslims present at the dinner as a good way to restore belief in Islam.

“Taking legal action and applying force to change one's mindset, especially in religious matters will not work,” he added.

“An individual's belief should not be handled with force. It should be handled in a more delicate manner. Hence, the Sultan's announcement to provide counselling is the best way in restoring belief in Islam.”

Selangor religious affairs committee chairman Datuk Dr Hasan Mohamed Ali said they would use hi-tech gadgets to prove their cases in the court.

“I will make sure that a high-performance management system and sophisticated equipment are used to defend every case,'' he said.

He said the ruling was an indication that the Sultan wanted both Jais and the Selangor Islamic Religious Council to act “professionally”.

Meanwhile, Gerakan president Tan Sri Dr Koh Tsu Koon said the Sultan, in his royal wisdom, had defused the situation.

“By further ensuring no parties will be prosecuted will allow the matter to be put to rest,” he said.

What was important now was for Jais and other agencies to review their practices on raids especially when it involved a non-Muslim place of worship, Dr Koh said.

This is an article taken from FreeMalaysiaToday which highlights the problems that the Church in Malaysia is facing today. Please pray with the National Church Leaders and join hands with other Christians all over Malaysia as we unite in a spirit of prayer in response to the NECF 40-Day Fast and Prayer (click for link to NECF)  which began on 7 August - 15 September.

Malaysia’s season for Christian bashing

Mariam Mokhtar

 | August 19, 2011

So what is it about the Christian faith that scares our political leaders so much? Is it the message of love and forgiveness?

In recent months, Malaysians have seen a constant drip-drip of Christians being persecuted because they were alleged to want to take over the country, both in mind and in spirit.

If we in the east complain that the west is out to demonise Islam, then how different are we from them when any Christian act in Malaysia is seen as a threat to Islam and the Malay race?

Do our political leaders seriously imagine that the Malaysian Muslim is so feeble and his soul so tormented, that he is easily influenced by the devil or by the teachings of Jesus Christ?

Do they think we are so irresolute and weak-willed that another religion, race or culture will swallow up our individual identities?

Maybe they are right. The number of schools with cheerleaders for sports activities, and proms for end-of-year parties with boys in tuxedos and girls in slinky ballgowns, is on the increase.

Perhaps MacDonald’s and KFC should be banned and Starbuck’s closed down to protect our local kedai makan and kedai kopi. It appears that Uncle Sam is a more corrupting influence than religion.

Supermarkets and hypermarkets are not good for our local shopkeepers either. So why are all western imports allowed to proliferate? They act in subtle ways and have a worse effect on Malaysians.

Malaysians seem to be oblivious to the fact that Article 11 of the Federal Constitution guarantees religious freedom for all Malaysians (bar Muslims).

The indoctrination by our ruling party means that we have lost the quality of being respectful of each other’s beliefs. When will the time come before we also lose sight of our own humanity and dignity?

Ipohites will recall that in 2006, the Catholic community in Silibin, had a frightening experience when a hostile mob surrounded their church because of a rumour started by the Perak mufti Harussani Zakaria. He claimed that hundreds of Malays would be baptised.

Was Harussani prosecuted for spreading false rumours and threatening our national security? Hell would probably freeze over before that were to happen.

The Perak mufti got a mighty fright when the public recoiled at his suggestion to ban Manchester United football and other teams with jerseys with “crosses” which “promoted the Devil”.

Harussani also banned Muslims from the poco-poco dance because it contained elements of Christianity and soul-worshipping. Many will recall that Harussani also forbade Muslims from attending open houses of non-Muslims for their festival days.

The ‘Allah’ ban

In 2007, The Herald, a weekly Catholic newspaper, was banned by the Home Ministry from using the word “Allah” in its publications. The home minister at the time, Syed Hamid Albar, said that Christians using “Allah” were a threat to national security and would create misunderstanding and confusion among Muslims.

Does he really think Muslims are as obtuse as the Cabinet?

In 2009, two Muslim reporters from Al-Islam took part in Catholic Mass and received Holy Communion at St Anthony’s Church in Kuala Lumpur. The reporters desecrated the Holy Communion by spitting out the wafers, photographed their actions and then published their deceit in their magazine.

Last Christmas, Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak attended the Archbishop of Kuala Lumpur’s Christmas tea party but his aides ordered the removal of crucifixes and other religious symbols, and that no hymns or prayers be said in Najib’s presence.

This was closely followed by the confiscation of two consignments of around 40,000 Bibles from Port Klang and Kuching. Najib finally ordered one batch to be released but Home Minister Hishammuddin Hussein stipulated two conditions prior to the release, which resulted in the Holy Books being defaced.

This year alone, we have seen allegations of Christians wanting to replace Islam as the official religion of the country in readiness for a Christian prime minister. This was followed by a JAIS raid on a DUMC charity dinner because there were claims that Malays were being proselytised.

The latest Christian bashing is when Deputy Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin, who is also Education Minister, said that there were attempts by school teachers or tuition teachers to spread other religions to Muslim children.

It had been reported that Muslim children were given free tuition by non-Malay youths and had been taught to sing songs in adulation of Jesus Christ “while making hand signals to show the crucifix symbol”. The children were fed stories about Jesus, his crucifixion and his teachings.

Muhyiddin said, “Such things cannot be done because we have specific laws, (and) enactments.”

He announced that the Islamic religious department in each state had the power to take action against any group who tried to spread other religions to Muslims.

Political ploy

How does this arrogance compare with the Star reports in 2006 that RM10,000 would be given to each Muslim preacher who married an Orang Asli woman and converts her?

In addition, the preachers would receive free accommodation, a four-wheel-drive vehicle and a fixed monthly allowance of RM1,000.

Some Orang Asli were tricked into giving personal details which were used to fill up the conversion form and a token sum of RM400 paid. Others claimed that they had been promised development and aid as incentives.

Aren’t these people being converted for the wrong reasons?

Perhaps Muhyiddin should be more open and permit religious knowledge at school. It is shocking that many of our young are not aware of the existence of other faiths. They fail to respect others and expect non-Muslims to conform to their beliefs.

I went to a boarding school in England and so did a few of my cousins and their friends. Many of our political leaders like Najib (Malvern) went to a Church of England (C of E) school, just like his cousin Hishammuddin (Cheltenham Boys) as did Raja Zarith Idris of Perak.

They said the Lord’s prayer everyday in chapel and attended Sunday service as well as Carol services. As do the children of the ministers who attend English boarding schools, today.

As most people are aware, the UK boarding schools are mainly C of E schools. Prior to that, I was at Bukit Nanas and CHIJ in Malaysia. None of us have been indoctrinated into Christianity even though the Lord’s prayer was said every morning during assembly.

We respect the Christians like they respect our adherence to our own faith. In UK, none of my Muslim, Buddhist or Hindu Malaysian compatriots became Christians. We sang hymns or Christmas carols mainly because we liked singing or it was part of the school culture.

So what is it about the Christian faith that scares our political leaders so much? Is it the message of love and forgiveness? Or is it a political ploy to scare Muslims into thinking that only Umno are defenders of the faith?

Mariam Mokhtar is a FMT columnist

DUMC DISPENSABLE COLLATERAL DAMAGE

This is an Article by Dr Ng Kam Weng (Kairos Research Centre) expressing his personal view in the trespassing of DUMC grounds issue.

PAS REAL TARGET OF JAIS' RAID: DUMC DISPENSABLE COLLATERAL DAMAGE

By nkw

The war drums beat ominously. The platoons are quickly mobilized for attack. The commanders are confident that their target will be hit and destroyed given numerous artillery salvos. I am not talking about shock and awe in the Iraq war. I am talking about how JAIS and UMNO activists have carefully orchestrated their recent attacks on the Malaysian church after their illegal raid of DUMC.

It is easy to be confused, especially when JAIS and UMNO activists deliberately cloud the issues with wild claims, hoping that their illegal transgression of a church will be overlooked and the innocent victim (DUMC) will somehow appear guilty, if accused repeatedly. It does not matter that till now JAIS has failed to produce any credible evidence to support the raid. JAIS seems to operate on the basis that people will end up believing lies so long as they are repeated enough in the media.

AN UNDENIABLE VIOLATION OF A HOLY PLACE
But how does one sift out the truth from the lies? First we stress the undeniable facts:

A group of 20-30 members from JAIS and the police raided the premises of DUMC where there was a thanksgiving dinner held by Harapan Community in appreciation of people who have supported their community service. This raid was undeniably an illegal act since the officials were unable to produce a search warrant.

In effect, the JAIS violated the sanctity of the house of God. The raid is not only illegal; it is an almost unforgivable sin. Any Muslim should know this and would shrink in horror and be tempted to retaliate should officials from another religion violate their mosques.

JAIS initially defended the raid by claiming that they are empowered to act on grounds of suspicious activities. But even if we go by the requirements of the Penal Code, such a raid must be backed by reasonable suspicion, that is, there must be prima facie evidence to justify the raid. Till today, JAIS has failed to offer the slightest modicum of evidence that can be accepted as 'reasonable suspicion', much less be accepted as prima facie evidence.

JAIS backpedaled from its claim to have the authority to raid DUMC and now describes its act as an 'inspection' - a definite sign that it realizes (but not admitting publicly) that the raid was illegal.

BUT what gives JAIS the authority to inspect DUMC or any church for that matter?  The supreme law of the land, the Federal Constitution specifies that Shariah has no jurisdiction over non- Muslims. JAIS officials accompanied by the police or not, have no business to interfere with what is going on inside the church - especially, when there is not the slightest reasonable suspicion.

To repeat, JAIS violated the sanctity of the sanctuary of another religion. The raid is not only illegal; it is an almost unforgivable sin.

FLIMSY EVIDENCE FOR CHARGE OF PROSELYTIZATION
JAIS' violation is unjustifiable and would set a dangerous precedent if left unchallenged. Christians are naturally aggrieved (and MBBCHST publicly shares the same sentiments with a public statement) and have good reasons to demand an apology and receive an assurance that such acts will not be repeated.

This grievous issue must be kept in the forefront, especially now that JAIS is desperately trying to muddy the controversy by heaping a series of accusations about Christian proselytization and conversion of Muslims.

But the allegation of proselytization just won't hold water:

First, JAIS has not linked, much less produced evidence to support allegations of proselytization in DUMC. If there is any allegation of proselytization, it is directed towards Harapan Community. DUMC is only the renter letting out its premises to a bona fide NGO. DUMC's innocence and integrity is above reproach. In contrast, JAIS exceeded its bounds of authority.

Second, JAIS has failed to produce credible evidence to support the charge of proselytization by Harapan Community. It produced a scanned picture of a quiz on Islam and took offense that words like "Allahu Akbar" and "Alhamdullilah" were used at the dinner. But this evidence proves to be dubious upon a closer examination:

The quiz turns out to be an exercise to help people understand Islam better with questions like. "What does the word 'Quran' mean? How many sura are there in the Quran? What are the pillars of Islam?" It may be granted that JAIS may have (still disputable) grounds to charge Harapan community if the quiz was on Christianity, but it turns out that the quiz was on Islam. If anybody has reason to be offended, it is the Christian community, since apparently Islam was taught in church!

Likewise, what's wrong with Christians using the words "Allahu Akbar" and "Alhamdullilah"? The phrases mean "God is great" and "Praise to God". Malay speaking Christians who share strong historic links with Arabic Christians would feel as natural singing these phrases as when singing "Hallelujah". As such, praise to God there certainly was, but proselytization, there surely wasn't.

All in all, JAIS must be pretty desperate to clutch to these 'evidence' to support the alleged proselytization.

JAIS tries to buttress it case by making reference to Muslims who have converted to Christianity, but these cases have nothing to do with Harapan Community. But for the sake of argument, even if a Malay attending the thanksgiving dinner eventually declares he is a Christian, JAIS cannot simply jump to the conclusion that Harapan Community was guilty of proselytization. It could be the case, that this Malay became a Christian on his own initiative (given easy access to teaching of Christianity in the internet) or that he was influenced while studying overseas.

JAIS may implicate Harapan Community of proselytization only if it produces evidence that directly links the social services of Harapan Community to proselytization. So far, JAIS is unable to produce any evidence. A fortiori, it is even less able to associate DUMC with questionable allegations of proselytization.

To conclude and to recapitulate to the main issue, JAIS has no justifiable grounds to raid and violate the sanctity of a church (DUMC).

QUESTIONABLE PROCESS OF INVESTIGATION
That JAIS has failed to produce credible evidence does not mean it will not keep trying. But the longer it takes for JAIS to produce such 'evidence', the less credible the 'evidence' will turn out to be.

Naturally, JAIS has been unrelenting in wanting to haul up the twelve Malays who were at the dinner for further questioning. These Malays were first required to report for 'counseling' which would imply they were guilty of an (unproven) offence. When queried by the lawyer representing the twelve, JAIS replied that they were called to give statements (which should mean the twelve are innocent until proven guilty).

The lawyer representing the twelve sought the following clarifications before advising his clients to report to JAIS, that is, what legal provisions enable Jais to issue the Notice Orders requiring their clients to present themselves;
•    The offence or details of the offence Jais is investigating;
•    The offenders, if any, who were being investigated by Jais;
•    The real purpose requiring their client's attendance before Jais, whether to attend 'pre-counselling sessions' as offenders or merely to assist Jais in its investigations, if any.

As far as I know, JAIS has so far not answered these questions. There is now a new threat that the twelve will be arrested if they fail to turn up for questioning, as this would amount to an insult to Islam. This new threat is most disturbing when one notes a parallel phenomenon related to the charge of blasphemy to justify all manner of abuse of power by Islamic officials in Pakistan and some Middle Eastern countries. Submitting to JAIS' threat would initiate a new trend that allows "blasphemy" and "insult" to cover a multitude of power abuse.

One can only surmise how the twelve will be questioned by JAIS and in the light of JAIS' questionable behavior so far, people can only be skeptical of any 'evidence and 'confession' that may eventually be extracted from the twelve.

PAS THE REAL TARGET OF JAIS' RAID
One final observation:

First, it bears repeating that the real issue in this controversy is not about the alleged proselytization of Muslims by Harapan Community; it is the unprecedented act of violation of the sanctity of a Church (DUMC).

JAIS would have succeeded if it manages to deflect attention from this primary issue with its machinations of charges of proselytization and insult to Islam.

Even then, despite the importance of remaining focused on the raid of DUMC, it should be noted that the main target of this present exercise by JAIS (or whatever UMNO puppet master behind it) is not Harapan Community or DUMC. The real target is PAS.

UMNO officials and Malay supremacists like PEMBELA think they have found the right tactic to regain support from the Malay electorate. By seizing on the bogeyman of 'conversion' and 'proselytization, it would catch PAS wrong-footed, put the Menteri Besar of Selangor on the defensive and if possible seriously damage Pakatan Rakyat.

If PAS fails to side with JAIS and condemns the alleged conversions, it will be accused of abandoning its role as the defender of Islam. UMNO then offers itself as the only genuine defender of Islam. If PAS publicly sides with JAIS it will lose its hard earned support from the non-Muslim electorate. Either way, PAS will be gored by the horns of dilemma set by UMNO.

Without a doubt, Islam is exploited by politicians to gain political power. It doesn't matter if Harapan Community and DUMC happen to be convenient tools in the struggle between UMNO and PAS. They are just dispensable collateral damage.

This article also appeared in Malaysia Insider on 15 Aug 2011 LINK

CHRISTIANS APPALLED BY JAIS CHURCH RAID

This is the Press Statement issued by the Bishop Ng of CFM.

CHRISTIAN FEDERATION OF MALAYSIA
(PERSEKUTUAN KRISTIAN MALAYSIA)

4th August 2011

CHRISTIANS APPALLED BY JAIS CHURCH RAID

The Christian Federation of Malaysia is deeply shocked and appalled at the raid by the officers of the Selangor Islamic Religious Department (JAIS) and the police conducted on the premises of the Damansara Utama Methodist Church (DUMC) on the evening of 3rd August 2011.

The dinner function organised by Harapan Komuniti, a community development NGO, is an annual thanksgiving celebration to commemorate its efforts on its numerous community projects for the benefit of Malaysians.

It is ironic that such a celebratory gathering of volunteers, leaders, supporters and members of the community should be disrupted by the high-handed and repugnant actions of the state religious enforcement officers.

This arbitrary action of the JAIS and the police officers is an affront to the values of mutual respect and harmony which should be accorded to every person, regardless of religious, cultural or ethnic background in Malaysia.

We also wish to question the legality of the raid and the subsequent interrogation and harassment of the guests present at the dinner as to whether the officers were acting within their legal jurisdiction.

Christians are shocked and saddened at this deplorable action. In recent times, we have witnessed an increase in incidences where Christians have been singled out and targeted with unjustified accusations and prejudice from various groups as well as certain mainline media who have made inflammatory statements against the spirit of 1Malaysia.

We call upon the relevant authorities, including His Royal Highness the Sultan of Selangor, to conduct a thorough investigation over this unjustified raid.

We also call upon the government and all Malaysians to work together to build a truly cohesive and harmonious society based on mutual respect, dialogue and understanding.

In this holy month of Ramadan, we Christians wish to extend our heartfelt greetings and felicitation to our Muslim friends.

Yours sincerely,
Bishop Datuk Ng Moon Hing
Chairman and the Executive Committee,
Christian Federation of Malaysia

Community Thanksgiving Dinner Trespassed at Dream Centre

This is a press statement issued by the Senior Pastor of DUMC regarding the raid at church grounds during a charity dinner.

Click here for original source : DUMC DREAM CENTRE or PRESS STATEMENT