DISKUS Vol.3, No.2 (1995) pp.13-22 The Malaysian Government and Christian-Muslim Relations in Malaysia Dr Theodore Gabriel Religious Studies Department Cheltenham and Gloucester CHE Park Campus Cheltenham GL50 2QF, UK ------------------------------------------------------------- ABSTRACT Malaysia has one of the most diverse populations in the world, with numerous ethnic and religious groups. Islam is marginally in the majority and has in the past been tolerant and undogmatic and unassertive in faith and practice. Of late there has been a resurgence of Islamic fundamentalism, notably among the urban youth, with calls for Islamicising the state, and stressing the dominance of Muslims. This has been fed by the increasing coalescence of religious and ethnic identity - the Malay-Muslim equation - with its attendant privileges and prominence both politically and culturally. This article examines the pressures faced by the moderate Mahathir administration, its response to fundamentalism and the policies adopted by them to counter this phenomenon and their impact on Christian-Muslim relations in Malaysia. ------------------------------------------------------------- Malaysia has one of the most diverse populations in the world, with many ethnic, religious and linguistic divisions. In this paper I will look into the relationship between two religious communities, namely the Christian and the Muslim, and how they are affected by the policies, attitudes and actions of the Malaysian Federal and State administrations. The population of Malaysia is nominally a Muslim majority one, 53% of the population being Muslim. The Christians are overall just 8.6% of the population but we will concentrate our examination of Christian-Muslim relations on the Eastern state of Sarawak, while at the same time maintaining an all-Malaysian perspective. This is for two reasons: firstly Sarawak has a more substantial Christian presence, the population there being 29% Christian, and therefore Christian- Muslim relations assume greater significance in this region than in peninsular Malaysia. As a matter of fact the Christians are numerically the biggest religious group in Sarawak. The second reason is the fact that I did my researches in this state. It could be presumed that the distinct religious demographic pattern in Sarawak would make Christian-Muslim relations in the state quite different from that of Peninsular Malaysia. But as we shall see this is far from the truth, due mainly to the policies and actions of the Federal and the State Governments, the latter having the same political composition as that of Kuala Lumpur, is a strong ally of the Mahathir administration, and operates on the same political ideology as the Centre. For this paper I will examine the issue of Christian-Muslim relations under the following headings. 1. Constitutional provisions 2. Islamic revival, fundamentalism and the call for the Islamic State 3. Freedom of worship and for propagation of religious faith 4. Educational matters. Constitutional Provisions The Malaysian constitution promulgated on 31st August 1957, Merdeka (Independence) day enshrines a special position for the Malays. This makes them eligible for special reservations in educational institutions and in jobs, both in the public and private sectors, and priority in governmental grants and subsidies. A Malay is defined as a person who professes the religion of Islam, speaks the Malay language - the Bahasa Malaysia - and conforms to Malay custom.<1>. A Christian, even if he is ethnically Malay is not eligible for these prerogatives. A Malay/Muslim will lose these privileges if he converts to another faith. The indications are that the religious element of Malay identity is rapidly overtaking the others in importance. As S Husin Ali points out, a Malay educated in an English medium Public School will speak only English and may be so Westernised that he follows Western etiquette and customs, but will still be able to claim concessions if he is a Muslim.<2> Tunku Abdul Rahman Putra, the architect of Malaysian independence, always advocated considering all Malaysian Muslims as Malays, irrespective of their racial and ethnic origins. The Malays argue strongly that they are the original and therefore the true citizens of Malaysia. University lecturer Abdul Latif Bakker states, "The coming of immigrants from a non-Malay world has never been at the invitation of the Malays, but was the result of British efforts".<3> Mohammed Noor Nawawi of the ABIM, the Islamic youth organisation, speaking at a seminar on national culture at Selangor states, "Whether we like it or not, it is an accepted fact that the Malays came here first and they have a say in formulating national culture".<4> There are two factors in the genesis of this feeling which are, strangely enough, to some extent mutually contradictory. The first is the long period of subordination by a Christian power, during which the Malays became economically, educationally and even geographically in the backwaters of their nation. They were truly apprehensive that they would be second class citizens in their own land. Secondly the British tried to legitimise their rule by patronising the Malay royalty who symbolised both the Malayness of the country and the dominant status of Islam in the nation. The Sultans were religious supremos, i.e. the head of Islam in their respective states. Thus the supremacy of the Malay/ Muslim is to some extent of the making of the colonial rulers. The special privileges extended to the Malay/Muslim are not conducive to good inter-ethnic/inter-religious relations. It is true that the Malays are on the whole backward economically and educationally and the rationale for the special privileges is to bring them up to the level of the other communities. However many a poor Chinese, Hindu and Christian feels discriminated against. Dr. Tan Chee Beng criticises the assumption that all Chinese are richer than Malays.<5> He states that class differences in each ethnic group have been ignored. Frustration is generated when a poor Christian, for example, observes a rich Malay/Muslim benefiting from the special concessions, whereas he has nowhere to turn to. Assistance on an individual basis on the merits of each case would have been more just and helpful for the cause of national integration and harmony than the blanket eligibility now conferred on the Malay/Muslims. The special status of the Malay/ Muslim is one of the issues covered by the Sensitive Issues Act of 1971 and hence discussion of this matter, even in Parliament, and creating a controversy on the issue of the special privileges is a criminal offence in Malaysia. Thus the ethnic and religious minorities are left without any avenue of dissent or airing of their grievances on this issue. The Bhumiputra (literally: sons of the soil) of the Borneo states are also eligible for the concessions and therefore the Christians who hail from the Iban and other such indigenous tribal groups can benefit by these concessions. But from my conversations in Sarawak with such Christians, including Christian government officials, I found that they are often discriminated against in the matter of appointments and promotions within the services by the ruling Malay/Melanau/Muslim faction. Thus Bhumiputra status has not benefited the Christians as much as the Malay/Muslim. I talked to Col. Dunstan Nynaring, a political secretary to the Chief Minister, himself a Christian and an Iban, about this issue, and he was of the opinion that it was entirely natural that the administration would prefer to have their own people in key posts. He thus implied that there was in effect an unofficial networking in Sarawak officialdom, working in favour of Muslims vis-a-vis the Christians. It is clear that it is not their ethnicity alone but their religious identity as well that is important to the Malay/Muslim. Thus there is greater concern now among them, not only among the more radical Islamic parties such as the PAS and the Dar al Arquam but even among moderate groups such as the UMNO and the ABIM, about purifying Malaysian Islam, traditionally known for its relaxed and syncretic nature, and turning it into a more rigorous Middle Eastern form, and about "deviant" forms of Islam such as Quadiyanism. They seem to feel that these differing approaches to doctrine and practice could not only dilute the orthodox basis of Islam but also split the Malay community, as indeed it has already done with the older generation, the Kuam Tuan, opposing the reforms of the youth, the Kuam Muda. The restoration and affirmation of Islamic identity and belief is especially important in the urban conglomerations which have greater ethnic and religious diversity in population than the kampongs, and it is here that the more fundamentalist Islamic factions have their hold, especially on the educated youth. Islamic fundamentalism, revival and the call for the Islamic State The world-wide phenomenon of the rise of Islamic fundamentalism and resurgence has not passed Malaysia by. The reasons for aggressive Islamic reassertion are complex, but two factors are easily identifiable. One is the political domination of most Islamic regions by Western and presumably Christian powers in the past and the inevitable permeation of Western culture, perceived by many Muslims as eroding traditional Islamic values. Westernisation continues through the media, notably by satellite, and through educational systems, but in many parts of the Islamic world concerted efforts at combating Westernisation are taking place, in the form of stricter adherence to Islamic rituals and cultural symbols such as Islamic dress, and prohibition of the sale and use of alcohol. Campaigns against the cinema, Western music and dance and other manifestations of Western culture are taking place. The second is the Palestinian problem. Muslims tend to find in the plight of the Palestinians the vulnerability of Islam and manipulation of the course of events in the Middle East by Western powers. Malaysia too had been under a Western power for a fairly long period, besides being the venue of Christian missionary activity, and has much sympathy with the Palestinians, so much so that they have barred the entry of Israelis to Malaysia. In the post-colonial quest for identity the element of Islam is rapidly supplanting the ethnic Malay element. As a matter of fact the radical Islamic parties such as PAS and Dar al Arquam have accused the UMNO leaders of emphasising ethnicity (asabiyya) rather than the Islamicity of the Malays. The ideology and programme of action of fundamentalist Islamic groups have a great appeal for the majority Malay/Muslim especially in the urban areas and among the literate youth. Islam is looked upon as the panacea for all the evils of modern society; the poverty, the corruption and moral degeneration. There is in addition to Daw'ah (lit.: the call) activities the demand for Islamicisation of the State, entailing the wholesale implementation of the Sharia. At present Islam is the state religion, but the association of the state with Islam is mainly symbolic and Islamic law is applicable only to Muslims. The Mahathir administration has been categorised as un-Islamic by the fundamentalists. Like the Tunku, Mahathir, Anwar Ibrahim and other UMNO leaders are good Muslims but against the implementation of the Sharia for the entire population, in view of the highly pluralistic nature of Malaysia. What is worrying for the Christians and other non-Muslim population of Malaysia is that Mahathir and others are trying to outdo the Islamic fundamentalists in the Islamic game. The UMNO leaders are well aware of the appeal that Islamic revival has on the majority community, and are apprehensive of losing their hold on the Malay/Muslim masses. They thus have to display their Islamic credentials, by establishing new mosques, sauras (prayer houses), an Islamic University, an Islamic bank, Qur'an reading competitions and Islamic seminars etc. Some of these measures are symbolic, but on the other hand the assertion of Islam in the public domain and the parallel restrictions on non- Muslim festivals and public rituals such as the Chinese Lion Dance cause apprehension in the minds of non-Muslims. Moreover they resent the spending of so much of public funds on Islamic matters, out of all proportion to the numerical status of the Muslim community. The government also aids Daw'ah (revival) activities. The Department of Religious Affairs and the Makamah Sharia (Islamic courts) are also a source of apprehension to non-Muslims. It has to be recalled that initially Tunku Abdul Rahman was against the establishment of these institutions. The powers of the Sharia courts have gradually been enhanced and there are proposals to increase them even more. The maximum penalties awardable by these courts have been raised from fines of 1000 dollars to 5000 dollars and imprisonment of 6 months to 3 years. Many Islamic parties contend that when an offence such as khalwat (proximity in isolation of male and female) is committed both parties should be prosecuted, even if one of them is non-Muslim. There is a general feeling among Muslims that Islamic law would be beneficial to the state and the entire population whatever their religious affiliations. Jusoh Hamid, a distinguished University lecturer in Law, argues that before the coming of the British the multi-racial society of Malakka subsisted in perfect harmony under Islamic law.<6> It is clear that the aspiration for the Islamic state is not limited to the radical Islamic parties. In my conversations with Haji Tawfeek, the head of BINA, a state-sponsored Daw'ah organisation, he opined that Islamic law will be quite fair to non-Muslims. He pointed out the experience of Yathrib, the Prophet's city. In their brochure BINA admits that they will work closely with other Islamic parties for the ascendancy of Islam in Sarawak, though Sarawak had not yet adopted Islam as the state religion.<7> It is significant that of late the UMNO administration has significantly toned down its recrimination of Islamic parties. Haji Tawfeek admitted that the aim of moderate parties such as UMNO and the ABIM is to ensure that there is a clear numerical superiority for Islam before the promulgation of the Islamic state can take place, and to this end they will support Daw'ah activities, and strengthen Islamic institutions. As Chandra Muzzaffar remarks, the UMNO etc. have a different means of achieving the Islamic state from the ultra-radical Islamic parties, but the aspirations remain the same.<8> Freedom of worship and of propagation of faith The Malaysian constitution states in article 3(1): Although the state religion is Islam, freedom of worship is one of the fundamental liberties of the citizen and any person may practice his religion without let or hindrance, but subject always to public health and morality. Propagation of religion is also permitted, but the states have the right to restrict by law the proselytisation of Muslims. Religious organisations and groups may own property in accordance with general law and may operate their own institutions and schools. Discrimination solely on the grounds of a person's religion is totally prohibited. This is the letter of the law but the actual situation is somewhat different. Dr. Tan Chee Beng in a forthright article on 'Constitutional Provisions for Religious Freedom in Malaysia' cites the difficulties posed by bureaucrats over the establishment of a church in Subang Jaya, owing to its proximity to a Muslim mosque - which he points out is a common occurrence in Indonesia - the ban on placing of Bibles in hotels by the Gideons and the paucity of Christian programmes in the media even at Christmas.<9> Rev. Paul Chee Ing <10> points out that while a Christian population of 4000 is necessary for permission to construct a church in a locality, only 800 Muslims are needed for construction of a mosque. Paul Ing and Teresa Ee mention how the Government instructed the heads of Christian schools to remove all crucifixes from classrooms.<11> An interesting event was the ban on the import of Christian Bibles in the Malaysian language from Indonesia. Copies of al Kitab imported by a Christian book store were impounded by the authorities. The government justified its action on the grounds that words like Allah and Nabi used in the translation were properly to be used only by Muslims. It is strange that the government should on the one hand promote the use of Bahasa (the Malay language) in schools - now in many schools the sole medium of instruction - and at the same time prohibit its use in Christian scripture. As English and other languages are gradually phased out, eventually Christians would be able to read their scriptures only in the Bahasa. The government lists some 25 words and 9 expressions which cannot be used by Christians. The objection to the use of the word Allah is all the more inexplicable as Christians and Muslims worship the same Being, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. Due to Christian protestations the ban was partially lifted and approved translations of the Bible and other literature permitted to be used by Christians. The government seems to be paranoid about the numerical superiority of Muslims, which they want to safeguard at all costs. It may be that they consider that more Muslims might be attracted to the Christian message if it were available in the national language. They also seem to suspect that by translating the Bible into Bahasa the Christians were somehow circumventing the ban on proselytisation of Muslims. We have seen that the Malaysian constitution prohibits the proselytisation of Muslims. In reality the law prevents Christians from even giving Muslims any Christian literature unless specifically requested for. There is a ban on Christian discourse in public and the scripts for religious broadcasts on the rare occasions they are permitted (usually on festive days) have to be approved by bureaucrats. There is even a ban on the screening of films with a Christian message or extolling a non-Muslim figure. Qur'an reading and discourses on Islamic doctrine and law are regularly broadcast. Rev. Aries Sumping, Principal of the Theological college at Kuching, told me that Christian missionary activity in Peninsular Malaysia is virtually at an end. The Government frowns on the conversion of the Orang Asli, the peninsular tribal people. Foreign missionaries including natives of East Malaysia are not permitted to work there. Government officials are alleged to place difficulties on the performance of Christian worship by tribals. The administration and the Malay/Muslim seem to consider all Orang Asli to be potential Muslims and would not brook any Christian proselytisation among them. The Christian missionary field in Malaysia is now confined to the tribal and non-Muslim population of the Borneo states. Of the various religions present in Malaysia, Islam and Christianity are the keen missionary faiths and therefore the real contenders in the proselytising field. Islam has an advantage in that the proselytising of Muslims is banned by law. Rev. Aries Sumping was of the opinion that the Muslims were diffident about missionary activity among the Christians, probably in deference to the prohibition on Christians from proselytising Muslims. But the BINA brochure does mention the conversion of Christians to Islam, including a Catholic priest, as a result of their activities.<12> It is also to be recalled that in 1973 when the state of Sabah officially adopted Islam for the first time as the state religion, the Sabah administration under Chief minister Tun Mustapha embarked on an aggressive campaign of proselytisation during which many Christians were converted to Islam, including the leader of the Kadazan tribe, Donald Stephens. The brochure also characterises encroaching Christian missionary influence as one of the problems that the new converts, presumably tribal people, face.<13> Thus in Sarawak there still seems to be rivalry between the two faiths in the missionary field. Educational Matters We have seen that the Malaysian constitution permits all religious communities to establish and run their own schools and other institutions. The Christian missions were the pioneers in Malaysia in the field of Western education. The Brooke white rajahs had been prompted to invite Christian missions to Sarawak mainly in the hope that they would run schools which would have a "civilising and pacifying influence on the natives". The Christians kept them open to people of all faiths, and although initially these schools had not been favourably looked upon by the Malay/ Muslims probably due to their proselytising influence, Rev Aries Sumping told me that many of the Muslim leaders of Sarawak were graduates of Christian schools. The Christian schools were intended not merely to impart Christian religious education to Christians, both expatriate children and natives and new converts, but were by themselves a powerful tool of evangelisaton. The maintenance of a Christian ethos was particularly important in these schools to this end, and through Bible Knowledge (sic) classes and school assemblies the Christian message was communicated to students. Since independence Christians are finding it increasingly difficult to maintain the Christian ethos and impart Christian religious education in their schools. The salaries of most the staff are paid by the government and the state administration now has much more of a say and control in the running of the schools. 75% of the staff are now appointed by the Government. According to Gordon P. Means, through the national curriculum and other regulations and the strings-attached grants in aid system, Government policies have been forced on the Christian and other private (e.g. Chinese) schools.<14> The teaching of non-Muslim faiths is totally prohibited as part of the regular curriculum and during school hours. On the other hand Islamic instruction has become compulsory if there are more than 15 Muslim students. The expenses for teaching Islam would be borne by the government, but Sec. 38A of the Education Act of 1961 states clearly that no government funds could be utilised in the teaching of non-Muslim faiths. Teachers being paid fully or partly from state funds cannot teach Christianity or other non-Islamic faiths, even on a voluntary basis. It would have been salutary if students were given an understanding of all the major faiths of Malaysia. Sec. 38B of the Act however stipulates that students could be given instruction only in the religion that they profess. It has to be admitted that the Government has instituted Moral Education as an alternative to Islamic education for non-Muslims. However, owing to the constitutional privileges enjoyed by the Malay/Muslims, 80% of the entrants in teacher training institutions are from that community and it stands to reason that they would predominate in the school staff in the near future. Islamic civilisation is a compulsory subject in these training schools. While the teacher trainees would have a very good understanding of the Islamic faith they would possess very little grasp of other faiths, nor perhaps even the inclination to acquire such knowledge. If Moral Education was to be taught mostly by Muslim teachers, it is probable that they would do so from a Muslim perspective. Rev. Hwa Young is of the opinion that Moral Education divorced from religion would be of little value.<15> He asks why the Government should not make provision for the teaching of all students in their respective faiths. This however would raise some logistical problems. The solution would be to give the students an authentic understanding of the major faiths of the nation. This would promote inter-religious understanding and harmony. The distinct demographic patterns of Sarawak do not seem to have advanced the cause of Christians in the state. Chief Minister Taib Muhammad is a close friend of Dr. Mahathir and had served long terms in the central cabinet as a minister. He follows closely the policies and ideology of Dr Mahathir and is such a staunch supporter of the Federal Government that he walked out of a meeting in which his own uncle, the former Chief Minister of Sarawak and the then Governor, made remarks critical of the Prime Minister. Secondly the Christians of Sarawak, unlike the Malay/Melanau/Muslim group, have not organised themselves politically and are divided along ethnic lines. Thus the numerical superiority of the Christians has not had much of an impact on political power in Sarawak. Conclusion This article is not meant to be a wholesale indictment of the Malaysian government. It is a fact that except for the state of Kelantan where the PAS is in charge, the Malaysian Federal and state governments are moderate and wish to promote peace and harmony in the nation. But their long term aspiration like that of the fundamentalists seems to be the Islamicisation of the nation, a form of governing the country that does not seem to be the best for such a pluralistic nation. It is good that the Christians of Malaysia have not organised politically. Over-politicisation of religion is seen to be doing more harm than good in many parts of the world. However, the Malaysian government's attempts to outdo the Islamic parties in championing Islam seem to lead them further and further down the slippery slope of bias towards and support of one group at the expense of others. The Islamic resurgence and the rivalry between the Islamic parties and the government in displaying their Islamic credentials have caused much apprehension in the minds of Christians and others, and retarded the 'consociational' process so vital for a pluralistic democracy such as Malaysia. Negata has rightly pointed out that in earlier days Islam was acceptable to all.<16> But the association of the state with one religion in as diverse a populace as Malaysia has necessarily to be symbolic, without going into much depth of ritual, doctrine and law. Islam can function effectively as a civil religion in Malaysia if the chosen rituals and symbols are acceptable to Muslims and non-Muslims alike. The Government also has to be seen to rise above "party political" considerations as far as ethnic and religious issues are concerned. Currently they seem to be working only for the advancement of the Malay/ Muslim. The absence of legislation similar to the Race Relations Act of Britain is quite conspicuous. By making discussion of issues such as national culture, the position of Islam and the privileges of the Malays illegal, and by weakening the authority of the judiciary, the government has stifled avenues for redressal of the grievances of the minorities. This is not conducive to national harmony. ---------------------------------- Notes: 1. Constitution of Malaysia Article 160 (2). See Arbee, Ahmad Rejal, Malaysia, Year Book. 1992-93. Kuala Lumpur, Berita Publishing Sdn Bhd, 1992, p.362 2. Ali, S. Husin, The Malays, their Problems and Future. Kuala Lumpur, Heinemann Asia, 1981, p.3 3. Quoted in Soong, Kua Kia, Malaysian Cultural Policy and Democracy. Kuala Lumpur, The Resource and Research Centre, 1990, p.16 4. Ibid, p. 42 5. In Khoon, Tan Chee, Malaysia Today. Petaling Jeya, Pelanduk Publications, 1985, p.24 6. Jusoh, Hamid, The Position of Islamic Law in the Malaysian Constitution. Kuala Lumpur, Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka Kementerian Pendidikan Malaysia, 1991, pp.96 and 102 7. Angkatan Nahadathul Islam Bersatu, BINA, A Brief Introduction. BINA, 1993, p.6. 8. Muzzafar, Chandra, Islamic Resurgence in Malaysia. Petaling Jeya, Penerbit Fajar Bakti Sdn Bhd, 1982, p. 33. 9. Khoon, Tan Sri Dr. Chee, 'Constitutional Provisions for Religious Freedom' in Contemporary Issues in Malaysion Religions. Petaling Jeya, Pelanduk Publications, pp. 18-44, pp.32 & 33. 10. Quoted in Soong, Kua Kia, Malaysian Cultural Policy and Democracy. Kuala Lumpur, The Resource and Research Centre, 1990, p.44 11. MCCBHS, Contemporary Issues in Malaysian Religions. 1984, p.23 12. BINA, A Brief Introduction. p.7 13. ibid. 14. Means, Gordon P, Malay Politics; the Second Generation. Singapore, Oxford University Press, 1992, p. 477 15. Yung, Hwa, in MCCBHS. Op. cit,.p. 91 16.Negata, Judith, The Reflowering of Malaysian Islam. Vancouver, University of British Columbia Press, 1984, p. 240. END