Anwar tells supporters not to join protests
Opposition Leader Anwar Ibrahim today discouraged Pakatan Rakyat supporters from joining in the protests organised for tomorrow against a court decision to allow a Catholic publication to use the term "Allah".
He said that while he will not stop Pakatan supporters, he nevertheless advised them to stay away.
"I certainly discourage them as my view is that you must discuss on this matter as it is a very serious and contentious issue involving the Muslim and Christian faith.
"It is important for them to forge better understanding and not to spread rankle and enmity between the two groups," he told reporters after filling an affidavit at the Federal Territory Syariah court this morning.
"The hypocritical stance, inconsistency and contradictory actions of the Home Ministry is very clear when it comes to allowing demonstrations.
"They disallow demonstrations with legitimate grounds but when it comes to this, they think it is politically beneficial.
"It is unwise for them to conduct rallies when emotion runs high. They should instead hold more serious meetings between Muslims and Christians," he said.
He also criticised the ministry over its "negligence and failure" in addressing the issue and for allowing this problem to fester.
"They should not have allowed this situation to prolong as the situation has became more tense.
"What they should have done is to allow an avenue for frank exchanges between civil societies, Muslim organisations, religious authorities and non-Muslim bodies," he added.
Anwar echoes PKR's stand
The purpose of the nationwide demonstrations is to protest against the use of the word "Allah" by other religions.
In recent days, various Muslim groups have expressed anger over a high court ruling which allowed Catholic publication Herald to use the word "Allah" in its Malay-language edition.
The home minister yesterday obtained a stay against that decision pending an appeal.
In the meantime, both Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak and Home Minister Hishammuddin Hussein gave tacit approvals for the protests by saying that the government will only act if the protests affected national security.
Anwar meanwhile echoed PKR's stand on the issue by saying that it was acceptable for Christians to use the term "Allah".
"Islamic tenets do not forbid the use of the term 'Allah' for other religions.
"Also, there is clear understanding among religious scholars and ulamas such as Wahbah Zuhaili, Sheikh Taha Jabir and Yusof Qardawi on this," he said.
