Lessons from “Allah crisis”

Who needs whose protection, God man’s or man God’s?

The recent escalation of tensions between Christians and Muslims in the country is indeed a sad development for inter religious and interracial harmony. A multiracial and multi-religious nation that once  took great pride of the peaceful coexistence of the diverse races is now poised to be torn apart by inter religious conflict by something which is really a non-issue, the name of God.

The insistence of the Christians to continue using the word Allah against the wishes of the Muslims and the subsequent high handed way the Jais officers raided the BSM premises and confiscating copies of bibles followed by the threats to rally in front churches last Sunday created so much tension that is  really the last thing we Malaysians want in our peaceful country. Fortunately the demonstrations did not materialize and the tensions have since cooled with the intervention of many moderate thinking Malaysians.

Despite the tensions raised some positive things came out from this crisis whish be lessons for all parties. The most significant among these was the unexpected presence of moderate Muslims led by Marina Mahathir with flowers in the premises of the Church in Klang to protect the Christians gathering there for their Sunday worship. There were also many moderate Muslims who condemned Jais for their raid on BSM and called for their fellow Muslims to stop the protest rallies in front of the churches in selangor. It was these wise and timely actions of moderate Muslims that forced Umno to recall their support for the church rallies, thereby cooling down the tensions.

 

                                                                              

                                                        ll smiles: Father Lawrence shaking hands with  Sallehen                                                                                                                                      

                                                                                                                                       

The crisis also resulted in the friendly meeting between Fr.Andrew Lawrence, the editor of Herald and the Selangor state executive councilor for Islamic Affairs Sallehen Mukhyi .In that meeting was significant that Lawrence called for goodwill saying, “Let’s be brothers and sisters. Let’s build bridges. Our country is about muhibbah, friendship and goodwill,” At the same time Sallehen called for the setting up of inter-religious dialogue which Umno was always not supportive. These were signs of reconciliation but will it have any far reaching effects waits to be seen.    

One thing was proven by this crisis – the various parties can solve their problems amicably if only the politicians keep away like what the PM did. He was away when he was needed most and has yet to make a definitive stand on this issue. All he said was asking the people to be calm and not be emotional. He may not say or do anything positive to overcome the impasse but his silence and inaction may in fact be really blessings.

The Allah controversy has now become more complex and spilled over into a confrontation between Muslims and Christians. The situation has come to dangerous level and the leaders at the highest level, especially the Prime Minister and his cabinet must act fast to stop deterioration of the situation. Silence on their part only emboldens the abusers of the law and the righteous denied justice.

All parties must first stop open confrontation on the issue of “Allah” and return to peaceful and civil dialogue. The dispute on the use of Allah cannot be solved in the courts, confrontation or with show of force. It is not about winning or losing nor is it about proving who is stronger. It is about God, by whatever name we choose to call Him, and thus it is about love, humility and goodwill of not any particular group but for the sake of overall peace and harmony, something far greater than the interests of any individual or group. 

Christians and Muslims alike must put God above all and for His sake embrace the virtues of humility and tolerance to compromise a little for the sake of all Malaysians and the country we love. We may be Christians, Muslims, Buddhists or Hindus and worship the God in accordance with the religion in which we grew up. It is mere stupidity to fight with one another to defend our God because it is not God who needs our protection but we who need His.

New Year revelry turns to anti-price hike rally

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It was peaceful and trouble-free

What was supposed to be the usual gathering at Dataran Merdeka to welcome the New Year 2014 was transformed into a massive anti-price hike rally (TURUN) against the government.

The huge crowds at the "Turun" rally last night is an indication of the growing people's displeasure with the recent price hikes which is going to hit the people hard in 2014.Not only petrol prices have been raised but there are also planned increase in electricity tariffs, water bills, road tolls, sugar, house rental and many more. With these increases one can expect everything else will go up as well – food, clothing, bus fares, medical bills and so on.

 For the average man on the street who earns less than RM3,000 a month, 2014 is not doing to be a happy New Year but a year of fear and anxiety over how he is going to make ends meet - feed his family, pay the bills, medical care, school expenses and so on... 

 

The fact that crowd comprised mainly of young Malaysians of all races is significant that the BN govt cannot ignore the frustrations of the people anymore. It may an early sign of the people's lost of confidence in the government which wants the people to tighten their belts to save the cronies.

How long can the people tighten their belts when the leaders, their families and cronies continue to loosen theirs with their luxurious lifestyle and massive wastage of hard earned taxpayer’s money? The people are pushed to the wall and they have no choice but react and react they will if no positive change is not forth coming soon.

Race and religious issues that worked before will not do so as poverty and financial difficulties are above race and creed and people especially the youth have shown that they can rise above every divisive issue they have and unite to demand their rights. The Bersih rallies before and now the anti-price hike rally bear testimony to the deep satisfaction of the people.

The time has come for the BN government to stop resorting to foolish means to stop the rising unhappiness of the people like threatening the people, using false charges of trying to topple the government by force and asking those not happy to leave the country. These actions only show their arrogance and stupidity that the people are not going to fall prey. The people are smart enough not be fooled over and over again.

Prime Minister Najib says he feels the pain of the people but feeling alone is not enough if it does not result in concrete actions to relieve that pain

The BN government must take this Turun rally as a final warning that all is not well among the people especially the youth. If it continues to ignore these warning signals to change, the people will not hesitate to change them. They must remember change can come anytime not only once in every 5 years as it is finally at the discretion of the people who have the legitimate right and power to bring change.