Refleksi : Apakah pemerintah NKRI dan instansi agama di hari depan akan melarang kaum Kristiani memakai kata Allah untuk Tuhan?
http://www.arabnews.com/?page=4§ion=0&article=130642&d=4&m=1&y=2010&pix=world.jpg&category=World Monday 4 January 2010 (18 Muharram 1431) Malaysia bracing for bruising linguistic battle Agencies KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia is bracing for a bruising linguistic battle after its government vowed to challenge a court ruling allowing a Catholic paper the right to use the word "Allah." Malaysia's high court ruled last week the Herald weekly had the right to use the word after a long-running dispute between the government and the newspaper. The paper has been using the word as a translation for "God" in its Malay-language section, but the government argues the word should be used only by Muslims. The verdict potentially upholds the constitutional right of the church newspaper to refer to Jesus (peace be upon him) as the son of Allah. Rev. Lawrence Andrew, editor of the Herald, says there is no other appropriate term for God in Malay. But Muslim leaders disagree and fear some people could be misled by Christians using the word Allah in wrong contexts. The say the word should be reserved for Islam alone. The legal tussle is raising tensions between Malaysia's Muslim majority, who comprise around 60 percent of the population, and its large ethnic-Chinese and Indian minorities. Jamil Khir Johari, minister in charge of Muslim affairs, said the national fatwa council had ruled in May 2008 that "Allah" could only be used by Muslims in Malaysia, state news agency Bernama reported late Saturday. "It is important for Muslims here to guard the use of the word and if there is any attempt to insult or misuse the word we must take all legal action as allowed under the federal constitution," he was quoted as saying by Bernama. Premier Najib Razak urged people to remain calm, saying he was concerned about reactions to the court decision. "The issue is very sensitive and touches on the feelings of Muslims, we need to be calm now and let the matter be resolved through the courts," he was quoted as saying by Bernama Sunday. Meanwhile the Herald's website was hacked at the weekend, causing the site to shut down, Rev. Andrew said. "Our website was attacked by hackers and was shut down and we suspect it was done by those unhappy with the present situation," he said, while declining to comment on the government's plan to appeal. The court ruled on Thursday the Catholic paper had the "constitutional right" to use the word "Allah," declaring the government's ban on the word "illegal, null and void." Muslim groups have said they plan to protest the ruling. Universiti Teknologi MARA political analyst Shahruddin Badaruddin said the main issue among Muslims was the fear that the use of the word by non-Muslims would inflame religious tensions. "It is all about the fear that allowing use of the word will make it easier for Christians to convert the local population," he said. Former Premier Mahathir Mohamad said the use of the term had to be governed strictly but that Muslims would still be angry over the ruling, according to the New Straits Times. The Herald is printed in four languages, with a circulation of 14,000 a week in a country with about 850,000 Catholics. [Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
