Malaysiakini :: Letters
Malaysiakini :: Letters |
| Raid by Jais an 'uncivilised' act Posted: 10 Aug 2011 03:23 AM PDT We, from the Islamic Renaissance Front (IRF) read the news regarding the proposed Faith Crime Act by the deputy education minister yesterday with trepidation. The proposal came about as a response to Jais' unwarranted raid of Damansara Utama Methodist Church last week. The raid conducted by Jais was purely based on suspicion that the Methodist Church was involved in an act of proselytisation. The Malaysian Aids Council however reiterated that the dinner was actually a fund-raiser for HIV/AIDS support programmes. The whole issue boils down to one main issue. The so-called defenders of the faith believed that their action was espoused by the religion of Islam in preventing the believers from apostasy. This uncivilised act of storming into a sacred place accompanied by the Mafia-like police was endorsed by none others than the insular and xenophobic NGOs like Perkasa and Pembela. We believe that such an act of storming into a church without any warrant and based on mere suspicion was a travesty of justice and democratic principles. Freedom of assembly is enshrined in Article 10 of our constitution. Any act that violates this freedom is reprehensible. We realise that this conflict stems from the static and stagnant approach to understanding Islamic law. The codified law in Islamic jurisprudence derived through the exercise of juristic reasoning of the latter years was considered sacred and beyond reproach. Hence the most rigid and literalist interpretations tend to prevail. The defenders of faith failed to look at ample evidence in the Quran that gives the liberty to the people to freely follow their conviction. Any individuals are given the right to accept or reject a particular faith based on his personal conviction. "There shall be no coercion in matters of faith" [Qur'an, 2:256] "And [thus it is] had thy Sustainer so willed, all those who live on earth would surely have attained to faith, all of them: dost thou, then, think that thou couldst compel people to believe" [Qur'an, 10:99] This message of freedom of belief and the call to religious tolerance is reiterated time and time again in the Quran and through various Prophets. This has been the call of all the Prophets even before Prophet Muhammad. Refer the Quran [7:85-87, 39:39-40, 17:84]. Faith is a personal conviction. The state has no authority to interfere in one's choice of faith. One is answerable to God for the decision he or she makes in her life. Hitherto it is very perturbing that a lawmaker proposed for Faith Crime Act to be enacted by the government. This act infringes on God given right for us to believe on our free will. No one has the authority to take this right from us. We are answerable to God alone in the life to come. We must ensure that our community embraces this freedom of religion and we will not succumb to any threat to remove this freedom away from us. The principle of reciprocity is to be upheld since it gives a meaning to the concept of justice. In a modern multiracial society like us, where different faiths lives together, we have to respect the right of an individual to choose and convert to a faith that he or she believes in. There should not be undue pressure or coercion for a person to believe in a faith he or she has no belief anymore. It would be a real tragedy and disaster when a state started imposing its authority in matters of faith. The writer is chairman and director of Islamic Renaissance Front (IRF). Full Feed Generated by Get Full RSS, sponsored by Used Car Search. |
| Troubling observations at Immigration Dept Posted: 10 Aug 2011 03:15 AM PDT For years now, foreign spouses have been voicing out their grievances about the Immigration Department dragging its feet in giving them PR and many were forced to leave for other countries where they can enjoy the right to reside and be employed without restrictions. Those still in the country had given up hope and could only expect PR posthumously (i.e. by being buried in this country.) Only recently under the present home minister and thanks to him, the backlog of PR applications have been cleared and many who have lived in the country for decades were finally given PR. As per a media release, all PR applications submitted until 2009 have been cleared. However some who have been visiting the Immigration Department at Putrajaya on a fairly regular basis, have noticed since 2009, there have been a large number of Indonesian male workers in their 40s at the counter for 'permit masuk', to be specific counter 2 and counter 3, submitting their documents. However it is highly unlikely that these men fall under any of the categories for PR as provided by Immigration. The Immigration website, http://www.imi.gov.my/index.php/en/entry-permit clearly indicates the ways in which one can get permanent residency status in Malaysia, as per the Immigration Act and Regulations 1959/63. 1. Individual investor with minimum US$2 million fixed deposit (FD) in Malaysia (high net worth individual) 2. Expert (highly talented and highly skilled individual) 3. Professional 4. Spouse to Malaysian citizen 5. Application for permanent resident through point based system Spouses have to be accompanied by their Malaysian spouses, so one can easily recognise this category of persons submitting documents for PR. As recent as July 2011, on a visit and within a three hour duration at immigration, it was noticed that there were around five spouses of various nationalities waiting and at least 20-25 Indonesian male workers within the age group of 35-45. There were two of that looked like they were over 50, and could have been in the country for five years or more. Ask some of the contractors in the housing or building industry, they will tell you that many of their Indonesian workers are getting PR. Some of them have not resided in the country for more than three years but have blue ICs. Oh, just for information, foreign spouses with Malaysian families are eligible to apply for PR, after they have been on a one year long term social pass, renewed for five years. Then it depends on who is approving the PR. Under the previous home minister, some spouses who were residing in the country up to forty years, were still waiting for their PR. Then again, spouses with Malaysian children who are widowed or in estranged marriages, get their PR applications withdrawn. They are required to have a sponsor to secure a visa to live in the country, perpetuating a situation of dependency. This pass does not allow the person to be employed. How then are they supposed to earn a living to support themselves and their families in dignity? At the other end of the spectrum, if these workers are PR, they will have the right to reside and be employed and though they do not have voting rights, who knows if citizenship for them has been fast tracked. An informal chat with some officers revealed that these people come with political recommendations. Perhaps all this needs verification and a parliamentary committee should be immediately formed to conduct an impartial inquiry. There should be an audit regarding the number of PR and citizenships awarded, their gender, nationality and under which category they come under. It has to be known on what basis are these workers being given PR or citizenships. Full Feed Generated by Get Full RSS, sponsored by Used Car Search. |
| You are subscribed to email updates from Malaysiakini :: Letters To stop receiving these emails, you may unsubscribe now. | Email delivery powered by Google |
| Google Inc., 20 West Kinzie, Chicago IL USA 60610 | |
0 ulasan:
Catat Ulasan