THE Malaysian Consultative Council of Buddhism, Christianity, Hindusim, Sikhism and Taoism (MCCBCHST) refers to the case of 27-year-old Banggarma Subramaniam, a.k.a. Siti Hasnah Vengarama Abdullah, who said she was converted to Islam at age seven. Banggarma says this was done by the welfare home, while the welfare authorities say it was done by her father.
In any case, Banggarma has vigorously and categorically asserted that for most of her life, she has lived as a Hindu and that she is now a Hindu.
We object most strongly to the suggestion by the deputy minister for Islamic affairs that Banggarma must go to the Syariah Court to ascertain her status. This statement was repeated by the director general of the Welfare Department, Meme Zainal Rashid. Penang Islamic Council President Shabudin Yahaya, meanwhile, stated that she would have to undergo the standard procedure to leave Islam and undergo counselling.
We recall that Dr Syed Ali Tawfil Al-Attas, Director-General of Ikim (Institute Kefahaman Islam Malaysia), was quoted as saying that a child, deemed ignorant, cannot convert to Islam as the child does not understand the kalimah shahadah and cannot bear witness of his or her own free will and understanding.
According to Article 11 of the Federal Constitution, every person is guaranteed the freedom to profess and practise his or her religion. It is our view that Banggarma, upon reaching the age of majority, should have complete freedom to choose her own religion without having to go through any procedure or counselling.
In some states, people deemed to be Muslims face imprisonment and punishment for apostasy, or for “attempting to leave Islam” or “insulting the religion of Islam”. This renders illusory the freedom of religion protected by our Federal Constitution and by all international norms.
The Syariah Courts only have jurisdiction over “persons professing the religion of Islam”. Banggarma does not profess the religion of Islam; she professes herself to be a Hindu. It is not proper to require her to go to the Syariah Court before she is allowed to profess her religion of Hinduism.
We therefore reiterate our calls, made many times before, for the authorities to put in place legislative reforms to ensure that Islam, and Islamic law, is not forced upon people like Banggarma who do not profess themselves as Muslim.
Rev. Dr Thomas Philips
MCCBCHST President
24 Nov 2009
Hwa Shi-Hsia says
How can a person be “unwittingly” converted to a religion? Dr Philips is right, which religion a person belongs to (or none) should be determined by her or his personal profession, not some ritual or paperwork done without their knowledge and consent.
Farouq Omaro says
If the person has no wish to remain [Muslim], why force her in? This I believe is against the very fundamentals of the Quran: “Let there be no compulsion in religion”.
Antares says
The benighted, bigoted and racist approach to Islam in Malaysia is perhaps the greatest threat to the credibility and integrity of Islam itself since the time of Muhammad. Totally pathetic that people can be dumbed down to this extent! Once again, I recall quite clearly that none of these problems existed until Mahathir decided to tamper with the fine balance between syariah and secular laws.