First let me say that I am a relatively new member to malaysiakini and enjoy it for its open dialogue on all issues in Malaysia. Secondly, let me say that I am a 'westerner' married to a Malay and am a practicing Muslim. I do not wish to offend any of the reading audience but I am a typical 'orang putih' when it comes to expressing myself in a matter of fact style.

I am responding to Anti-Wabbit's letter on Islamisation in Malaysia. After reading the article several times, I am still confused as to what is the exact complaint. It seems the author is using one issue to springboard or draw a line to more issues. Is it the issue of the dog license or is it the fact that the religion of the majority seems to be in his/her face so I will address both with a seemingly simple argument - that this is a democracy.

Unfortunately, the author seems to have been caught up in all the photos of Umno, MCA, and MIC holding hands at various ethnic events. Surely the author realises that these are just publicity stunts and don't represent the truth on the ground.

It would be repetitive for me to tell a Malaysian of the demographic make up of this country but let's take the Oxford Dictionary's definition of democracy.

Democracy - n. government by all of the people, usually through elected representatives; equality of rights in society, group, etc.

Now if the majority of the people are Malays, through their representatives, they get to make most of the rules. That's the way it works for better or worse.

It seems that the author is upset about the number of mosques in his/her given area compared to Buddhist/Hindu temples. Let me give you an example from America, the land of my birth. I was born in a major metropolitan area in the South. The South for the less involved readers is known as the Bible Belt, known for being overwhelmingly Christian. How many mosques, or synagogues for that matter, do you think I was exposed to growing up? The answer is one synagogue and one mosque while there are literally churches every three blocks. Now does that mean in a city of four million that there were only enough Jews and Muslims to fill that one synagogue and mosque? Probably not but the Christian majority outnumber the other minorities by so much, the Muslims feel lucky to have at least one mosque. Is it fair? Definitely not, but that is democracy.

I hope that no one would argue that Buddhists or Hindus don't have places of worship. However, if the argument is the number compared to the religion of the majority, please see the above example.

No wonder it came as such a shock when Dr Mahathir Mohamad pronounced Malaysia as an Islamic nation. In fact, the majority of the population practise Islam. Therefore Malaysia is an Islamic nation. Albeit, one with respect for other religions and beliefs that are (as far as I know) perfectly legal and prevalent. Just as America is proclaimed as a Christian nation (although you could debate the recent actions of the country as being totally un-Christian).

So what's left for the minority to do? Make sure that you vote for adequate representation, start a nationwide "let's have more children" campaign so that one day you will become the majority and can make all of the rules and/or voice your opinion in open outlets like this.

Other than that, welcome to the world of democracy.