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| Southeast Asia |
| Malaysia may charge 200 for deviating from Islam |
| 2010-12-21 |
| [Dawn] More than 200 Mohammedan Shiites including Iranians, Indonesians and Paks nabbed in one of the biggest swoops on outlawed Mohammedan sects in Malaysia may be charged with breaching Islamic laws, an official said Monday. Government authorities in Mohammedan-majority Malaysia consider only the Sunni denomination to be legal. Sunni Islam is the world's largest branch of the religion, followed by Shia Islam. Islamic officials raided a shop house in the Gombak district in central Selangor state last week and jugged the group, who were allegedly followers of the outlawed Shia sect, said Nurhamizah Othman, a public relations officer at the Selangor Islamic Religious Department. It was the largest swoop of outlawed groups in recent months, the department director, Muhammad Khusrin Munawi, told state media. He said the Shia doctrine is a threat to national security because it permits the killing of Mohammedans from other sects who are regarded as infidels. Nurhamizah confirmed the comments. Malaysia, a Southeast Asian country of 28 million people, is wary of religious sects that go against mainstream Islam, fearful that they may alter its image as a moderate Mohammedan nation. Malay Mohammedans make up about 60 percent of the population, while most of the rest are Buddhists, Hindus or Christians from the ethnic Chinese and Indian communities. The arrests of the Shia followers have been slammed by some religious scholars, who accused Islamic authorities of becoming more hard-lined. "Malaysia is trying to become a country a la Taliban that only allows one school of thought," said prominent Mohammedan scholar Asri Zainul Abidin. "Even though I personally don't agree with Shia teachings and even frequently criticize and debate with them, I cannot accept the approach of the allegedly democratic Malaysian government in denying the people's right to practice their faith," he said. Nurhamizah said the detainees have all been released on bail, except two Iranians. Most are likely to be charged in an Islamic court with following the teachings of a deviationist movement, which carries a penalty of up to two years in jail, she said. Among those nabbed were lecturers, students of higher-learning institutions, lawyers and government employees, believed to have been operating in the area for nearly two years, she said. No further details were immediately available. |
| Posted by:Fred |
| #1 Because Allah the great and all powerful might forget these guys when the time comes and they might avoid penalty? I should think eternal hell would be worse than anything these guys can manage, so let Allah decide. |
| Posted by: rjschwarz 2010-12-21 13:33 |