GOM AND CATHOLIC CHURCH STILL AT ODDS OVER "ALLAH"

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 KUALA LUMPUR 000159 SIPDIS FOR EAP/MTS AND DRL E.O. 12958: DECL: 03/04/2019 TAGS: PHUM PGOV PINR SCUL KIRF KISL MY SUBJECT: GOM AND CATHOLIC CHURCH STILL AT ODDS OVER "ALLAH" REF: A. 08 KL 719 - RELIGIOUS POLITICS MARK RUN-UP TO BY-ELECTION ¶B. 08 KL 365 - CATHOLIC CHURCH CHALLENGES BAN KUALA LUMP 00000159 001.2 OF 002 Classified By: Political Counselor Mark Clark for reasons 1.4 (b and d) . Summary and Comment -------------- ¶1. (SBU) The Malaysian government's attempted ban on the Catholic Church's use of the word "Allah" continues to generate politically-charged controversy with the courts yet to resolve the matter. Just prior to a February 27 court hearing, the Home Ministry issued an order allowing the Catholic Church to use "Allah" in its newspaper under certain conditions, only to rescind the directive on February 28 under pressure from elements of the ruling UMNO party and Muslim groups. The court case will resume on July 7. ¶2. (C) Comment: The legal tussle over the Catholic Church's use of the word "Allah" has gained increasing prominence since the GOM tried to impose the ban in 2007. While the Catholic Church continues to pursue a legal remedy as a matter of constitutionally guaranteed religious freedom, the issue has become even more politicized. Some UMNO leaders, to a degree posturing before the late March party elections, have equated upholding the ban with defending Islam itself and resorted to threatening rhetoric, while more Muslim groups have felt the need to join the fray. The "Allah" controversy will carry over beyond the current UMNO election cycle and will create an early religious freedom challenge for the anticipated new government of Najib Tun Razak due to take office by early April. End Summary and Comment. GOM Pushes Ban on Catholics' Continued Use of "Allah" -------------- -------------- ¶3. (SBU) The Malaysian government, led by the Home Ministry, has continued to press for a ban on the Catholic Church's use of the term "Allah" in the Church's Malay language communications. Government appointed Islamic leaders and a number of Muslim NGOs have joined Home Minister Syed Hamid Albar and officials from the ruling United Malays National Organization (UMNO) in advocating for the ban, originally imposed in 2007 but first ignored and then challenged in the courts by the Catholic Church. The government position, supported by many Malaysian Islamic groups, is that "Allah" is exclusive to Islam and may confuse Muslims, "especially the young." Underlying this is a concern over the possible proselytization of Muslims, which is illegal in Malaysia. The GOM wants the Church to use instead the term "Tuhan," a generic Malay term for god or lord. ¶4. (SBU) The Church's newspaper, the Catholic Herald, is at the center of the controversy. The weekly Herald has a circulation of 12,000 and carries reports in English, Bahasa Malaysia, Tamil, and Chinese. The Herald's editor, Father Lawrence, explained the Catholic Church's position to us, noting that "We (the Catholic Church) find this restriction on the use of 'Allah' unacceptable when we have been using it as a translation for 'God' for centuries in Malaysia." The Church has argued that the ban would violate constitutionally guaranteed freedom of religion and has vowed to continue referring to "Allah" while the issue is pending before the courts. Poloff obtained a copy of the Herald's most recent issue of March 1, which contained several references to God as "Allah." ¶5. (SBU) Home Minister Syed Hamid Albar has objected to the Herald's decision to continue using "Allah," adding that the Church should have waited for the court's decision. In January, Syed Hamid warned Church leaders and the Herald's editors, "If they continue acting this way, they are inciting conflict." Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Zahid Hamidi, who holds the religious affairs portfolio, did not mince his words in a February 1 interview with the Malay language newspaper Utusan Malaysia, owned by UMNO: "Don't play with fire and challenge the Muslims. We are willing to do anything to protect our religion." Zahid, who is contesting for one of the three UMNO Vice-President slots in the late March party election, claimed the Catholic Church has a "hidden agenda" to use the word "Allah" in an effort to convert Muslims. Taking Zahid's cue, Utusan published a series of comments from Islamic NGOs describing the Herald's defiance "as an affront to Muslims" and "belittling (of) Islam, the official religion of the country." Utusan warned the Catholic Herald "not to challenge the spirit of Islam's pure struggle (Jihad)." KUALA LUMP 00000159 002.2 OF 002 Home Minister Flip-flops on Authorization -------------- ¶6. (SBU) On February 26, one day prior to the beginning of court proceedings in the "Allah" case, the Home Minister surprised all sides by issuing an order allowing the Catholic Church to use "Allah" in its newspaper on the condition the paper's front page was marked "For Christians." In the February 27 court hearing, the Catholic Church's lawyers requested time to review the implications and conditionality of the order. The judge granted the request and scheduled the next hearing for July 7. Father Lawrence told poloff that although the order "makes things easier," it still prohibited non-Muslims from using "Allah" orally, which affects the Catholic Church and other non-Islamic religions' ability to conduct religious ceremonies. For its part, the Council of Churches Malaysia declared the ruling "unfair and unacceptable" because, they held, it still restricted freedom of religion. ¶7. (SBU) Elements in the UMNO party, including the Utusan newspaper, immediately condemned the GOM order. Echoing earlier comments, some Muslim groups, such as the Islamic Da'wah Foundation, argued that allowing non-Muslims to use "Allah" will "confuse and anger Muslims." Interestingly, the spiritual leader of the opposition Islamic Party of Malaysia (PAS),which has a conservative Islamist platform, took a more liberal position, stating that non-Muslims should be allowed to use the word "Allah." Against the backdrop of strident objections from within his own government and party, on February 28 the Home Minister rescinded his directive of two days earlier, calling it "a mistake." Minister Syed Hamid explained, "There is a judicial review on the matter and we leave it to the court to decide," insisting meanwhile that the Catholic Herald desist from using "Allah" pending the court decision. RAPSON