"Allah" - Stoking the Fires & Fanning Ignorance.

"PAS president Datuk Hadi Awang declared that the party
would back the use of the word “Allah” by the country's Christians,
arguing that it was consistent with the Constitution and Islamic principles.
“PAS would like to state that based on Islamic principles,
the use of the word 'Allah' by the people of the Abrahamic faiths
such as Christianity and Judaism, is acceptable,”
Hadi said in a written statement."

- ‘Allah’ debate exposes country’s fault lines, TMI

Never mind that Islam doesn't prohibit the use of "Allah" in worship by anybody else. Never mind that the Federal Constitution protects all in practicing their own faith. Never mind that Muslims worldwide are laughing at the imbecility of the hordes who protest against its use.
What matters to some politicians, is that they gain political mileage as "defenders of Islam" even if it was a lie.

This issue had cropped up long ago, but was hushed up after a kind of "compromise".
It was something that a certain previous PM could have addressed if he had any respect for the "Rule of Law", The Pillars of Democracy" or even understood the word "Nationhood".
To him everything needed a political solution & "Rule of Law" was dispensable - this is what we see today in our society, which has little respect for the courts (which have been rendered - "lackeys").

He allowed it to simmer to a boil, so that they didn't have to address the issue himself. He was a master at getting others to take the fall for him in many critical issues....
No effort was made to discipline those agent provocateurs, through the rule of law.
Reminds me of the term "hudna".

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"The deterioration of our political order did not happen overnight or in isolation.
It is part of a more general pattern of the decline of democracy
and the rule of law in many newer democracies.
Many post-colonial societies that began with democratic institutions
saw democracy collapse afterwards into dictatorship."
~ Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah
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Now with certain political parties under siege, they have sought to exploit it to the max. After having failed in their racisist agenda, they seek to exploit ignorance and evoke bigotry. They now use it as a means to "rally" the muslim electorate around them, while creating negative sentiments against the non-muslims.
The shameless vulgarity of ignorance in the comments from their leaders and opinions expressed in their blogs/FB is a testament to the unthinking minds that populate that particular party. In fact, I was quite surprised with the vulgar language they used to vent their emotions - with absolutely no reason whatsoever!
Through their stupidity & persecution, they make it virtually impossible for right-thinking person to respect or support them, and then they accuse the victims of lacking patriotism. They however have their support among those who are deemed "leaders" in our political hierarchy.

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"Right now, if you do not allow the protest, it will cause a lot of emotional reaction".
-Hishamudin, Home Ministry to allow protests against ‘Allah’ ruling

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One FB guy wrote (in bombastic words) that PAS sacrifices the sanctity of Islam - but when asked how it was so, silently chickens out - saying that only Muslims would understand. When challenged that it was his duty as a Muslim to "dakwah", his silence made me back-off with a polite "Kalau tak sudi, terima kasih" - lest I "provoke his primitive instincts".
This is the very siege-mentality (the primitive "flight or fight response") they promote among their masses.
The politicians whip up sentiments/emotions among their mindless minions, who have no idea why they do what they do. These are the people our politicians in the corridors of power, encourage to demonstrate.

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Either I am forgetful or the former prime minister has a selective recall
because in the 80s, the Al-kitab - the Indonesian bible - was banned
but a decision was made by his government to allow Christians
to import it with restrictions on its use and sale.

- Steve Oh, 'Allah' issue was resolved during Dr M's time, MalaysiaKini
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It is therefore not surprising that certain "selectively amnesiac" PM decided to give his 2cents worth on this issue - instead of demanding that rule of law should prevail, he has lent his weight to the unruly lobby of the ignorant. He carries on with his usual ways of undermining the courts so as to allow the executive to assert its power - to the detriment of our nationhood.
It doesn't matter to him one bit, if what his minions do subverts the "rule of law" - what matters is that he gets political mileage out of it. This may just be his last 'hurrah' - for his days are numbered.
The primitive Umno-aligned hordes (with their lack of respect for the "Rule of Law" and poor thinking capacity), now wish to change what has been prevalent in Sabah/Sarawak for ages before Umno or even Malaysia for that matter.

This issue threatens to fracture this nation.
It has been the language of our Christian Sabahan/Sarawakian brothers in prayer. It has been used in Malay translations for centuries (was it Munsyi Abdullah who translated the Bible into Malay?).

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"Negative comments and reactions on use of the term 'Allah'
will be a severe setback to relations among the various races and faiths,
and could poison ties between both halves of Malaysia....
Christians in Sabah and Sarawak have been using the term 'Allah'
from the 19th century,
long before the Federation of Malaysia was formed in 1963."
-Dompok fears backlash from 'Allah' row, MalaysiaKini
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Honestly - I don't give a fig about the word "Allah". My God doesn't need it and is definitely bigger than this word- and my faith is definitely stronger than those who "fear confusion".
To me, it is a word - that's all. In fact, it has been a word which I have not been comfortable with, until I understood how it came about - and so have come to accept it.

The bottomline here however, is the fact that the Federal Constitution provides for freedom of worship and does not permit interference of the executive in matters of worship. The Law is a living document that has to live in our hearts.
To kill its spirit would be to kill the hopes of true nationhood. Some believe that it doesn't concern them as they aren't Christian/Catholic/ Sikh/ Baha'i. They believe that it is a pointless fight - to quote temenggong (on MT), "I see two beggars fighting over scraps". (Temenggong, despite being Hindu, is obviously ignorant of the fact that "Alla"/ "Allo"/ Allah is also used in the Rig Veda & the Upanishads - or probably regards them as scraps).

They believe that the autonomy/independence enjoyed by the non-muslim houses of worship (the only bodies wherein the executive has yet to exert its influence in this nation), isn't worth defending. Those who deem it "childish" not to defend the supremacy of the Federal Constitution, they do so at their own (an the nation's) peril ....
and to them I say - "This is just the beginning - and every dog shall have its day".

With that, I rest my case - let's just hope that reason prevails ..... "Insya Allah".

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"The deterioration of our political order did not happen overnight or in isolation. It is part of a more general pattern of the decline of democracy and the rule of law in many newer democracies. Many post-colonial societies that began with democratic institutions saw democracy collapse afterwards into dictatorship."
~ Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah
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P.S.
So much for Najib's 1-Malaysia campaign.
For now, - with Mongolia/ RPK/ Bala/ Scorpene/Sukhoi/ Fat Mama etc etc etc hanging over his head like the Sword of Damocles - it is quite obvious that he's under "somebody's thumb".
Anyways - I have a strange feeling that this year will see the demise of Mahathirism as a driving force in our polity .....