I am getting deeply concerned. Everything these days seems to have something to do with Islam so much so that some of my non-Muslim friends are getting paranoid.

Observe the following incidences:

  • The banning of the film 'The Prince of Egypt'. If the 'Ten Commandments' could be shown in the 1950s, why ban it now?

  • The Melaka state government passed a legislation prohibiting non-Muslims from propogating their faith to a Muslim. If I were to invite my Muslim friends for a Christmas gathering, would that mean I am propogating my faith to them?

  • The banning of the musical video 'Getaran Jiwa', a duet between KRU and the late Tan Sri P Ramlee. KRU should in fact be complimented for being the first in the country to use such technology to promote the song. The ban must have been really disheartening.

  • The fine imposed on non-Muslims for holding hands in Ipoh. (Ed: The city council's bylaw which bans couples from holding hand in public parks is currently suspended).

  • The requirement that house owners in Johor Baru need to obtain permission from their Muslim neighbours before they can apply for a dog license.

  • The banning of the sale of pork in open-air markets in Kajang.

  • The near banning of the Instant Cafe Theatre.

The proposal by the minister responsible for religious affairs, Abdul Hamid Zainal Abidin to ban the film 'Bruce Almighty'. If this film, or any other film, is deemed unIslamic, the theatres screening it can always display a sign saying: 'For non-Muslims audience only'.

Here, the Muslims will not feel offended as the character is not one of the prophets in Islam, and at the same time, non-Muslims will get a chance to enjoy a good comedy. Let non-Muslims decide what is good and what is bad for them. We do not need the authorities to make such a decision for us.

Whenever something is deemed offensive, there is always that blanket application to all and sundry so much so that the non-Muslims are getting peeved over the whole matter.

Religion is a personal thing. It is between oneself and the Almighty. It would be extremely helpful if we could keep it that way, instead of encumbering everyone.

As soon as the outcome of the 1999 general elections were made known, DAP national chairperson Lim Kit Siang made a very apt statement: Umno will try to out-Islamise PAS. It is coming true.

With the authorities going gung-ho on the implementation of Islamic rulings, we may very soon find the authorities coming down hard on churches as it is against Islam to show images of Jesus Christ - who happens to be one of their prophets.

Ponder for a moment over this. If the authorities could display displeasure at 'The Prince of Egypt' a cartoon depicting the life and times of Moses, why not Jesus Christ? After all, Moses and Jesus Christ are part of the Islamic teachings.

I hope Malaysian Muslims will take a look at Muslims from Egypt, Turkey and Dubai. It is a total contrast of what we practise here. In these countries, you can even find couples holding hands without having someone coming from behind placing a pair of handcuffs on them.

Egypt has its own cultural show which includes belly dancing. Can we have that here? Turkey and the Indonesian Ministry of Transportation forbid its female citizens and staff to wear scarves.

All I can summarise is that the way Muslims practise Islam in this country is based on human interpretation and it is becoming more confusing by the day. If this is the case, why not live and let live and everyone of us will live harmoniously every after.

The next general election will soon be with us and at the rate things are going, and just like malaysiakini reader 'Ex-MCA', my family would rather cast our votes for PAS than the BN. At least PAS is being forthright with us from the beginning while we have been have had by the BN.

Before the elections, many promises were made. After the elections, not only did we not get what has been promised, we were even crucified for bringing up the issues. All I am interested is, as a citizen of this country paying the same taxes like anyone else, am I treated fairly?