Male chauvinism was never more clearly demonstrated than when Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Mohd Nazri Abdul Aziz turned bully in getting the Islamic Family Law (Federal Territories) (Amendment) Bill 2005 passed by the Dewan Negara, knowing fully well that it was prejudiced and discriminatory towards Muslim wives.

It would be his sheer desperation that got the ignorant Nazri to misuse the Whip and silence the women senators who had objected to passage of the IFL Bill.

For Muslim women, the new legislation is a nightmare come true. For women in general, such a sexist and bigoted attitude towards women's rights has made them realise that it is about time that a 'revolution' is undertaken to prevent further discrimination.

The state of affairs of Muslim wives has been undemocratically bargained away without their views being taken into account. Not only do they face disadvantages on a matrimonial basis, they end up being dominated and forced to accept the philandering ways of their husband as the latter's prerogative.

In Islam, the man has the right to wed up to four times, provided he is financially and mentally capable of looking after his spouses. But reality has shown that Muslim men are no longer applying these criteria in taking on the second, third or fourth wife. Polygamy is seen as the man's right and they take sheer delight in being able to exercise it.

And with each state applying its own Syariah laws, the wives do not even get the opportunity to know of their husband's intention to take on another wife. These women suffer in silence.

Now, Muslim wives have been left almost totally at the mercy of their husbands. The amended legislation allows the husband to stake a claim to his wife's property and live off her.

Religious indoctrination

The IFL adds to the recent controversy surrounding the 'conversion' of former army commando M Moorty who was claimed to have embraced Islam. While his wife insisted that her paralysed husband had not converted, the religious authorities opined otherwise and whisked away his body as soon as they had the opportunity to do so, for burial according to Muslim rites.

These two developments might mislead many into believing that Islam as a religion is 'zero tolerant' and reigns supreme over the other religions. Examined more closely, however, it is not the religion per se but cultural indoctrination that has created the hullabaloo over what Islam is all about.

To make matters worse, non-Muslims too have failed to understand and weigh religious issues accordingly. Human rights commissioner N Siva Subramaniam found himself in hot soup after he blurted out that Islam is the official religion and the Syariah Court holds the highest authority. Whatever happened to democracy in Malaysia?

The fact that Islam is the official religion does not by default or otherwise make the other religions inferior or less worthy of deference. But looking at the way issues concerning religion are dealt with in Malaysia, one especially of the non-Muslim faiths, one cannot help but worry over their status quo in this nation of 26 million people, of which 60 percent comprise Muslims.

Nazri's remarks (New Straits Times, Dec 30, 2005) reflect his blatant ignorance: "When a person's faith is in question, the civil court should be allowed to hear it. Let evidence from both sides be produced. But if a person is a confirmed Muslim without dispute, then it goes to the Syariah Court; there is nothing else to be done."

The crux of the matter is that Moorthy, a member of the team that scaled Mount Everest in 1997, was not a 'confirmed Muslim'.

Now is not the time to pass judgement or harbour resentment against any religion. Understanding the workings of extremists can make all the difference in avoiding the racial clash once experienced by Malaysia.

Silence is not golden

The government's stubborn silence in both the case of the ILF and Moorthy prove one thing - that talk is cheap and actions accountable.

Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi with great pride revealed the precepts of Islam Hadhari. Sadly, instead of living up to the people's expectation of ensuring a fair and just government, Abdullah has ended up raising public concern over his ability to lead the nation and taking to heart the sensitivities of the rakyat who have a varying religious background.

The government was stone deaf when few senators chided its decision to pass the IFL Bill, an effort which only stands in favour of Muslim men. Abdullah and his cabinet were silent.

Ditto the Moorthy case. No words of intervention came from the state. The government had in its mind decided that Moorthy, although a non-practising Muslim, should be respected as one of the brethren and be given due respect.

With that view, Deputy Prime Mnister Najib Abdul Razak on Jan 3 said Moorthy would be promoted in rank posthumously from a corporal to a sergeant effective June 2005, and therefore drawing an upgraded pension. As compensation, the government through Najib gave Moorthy's widow S Kaliammal RM110, 000 and Moorthy's monthly pension of RM947.33.

Words of 'encouragement' from Najib that the death benefit was the government's appreciation of Moorthy's services as a national warrior leaves much to be desired. Would the same concern be extended to another widow whose husband was not a convert? Or was this 'gesture' a way of hiding things under the carpet?

There was no black-and-white evidence supporting Moorthy's conversion to Islam. And the claims that he was a practising Hindu who also consumed pork still did not perturb the Federal Territory Religious Affairs Council. Is that how the sanctity of Islam is preserved? And since when did Syariah court become the 'supreme' judicial body?

Just what message is the government trying to impart to the people - that matters concerning Islam are given utmost attention like in the case of Moorthy or that when these concern women, the seriousness is not valid?

The next general election is not far away. While money politics and dirty tactics might work in ensuring that Barisan Nasional (BN) retains control, the same cannot be said for the trust the rakyat once had in the BN government.

When it comes to matters involving religion, the government had better realise that silence is never golden. Malaysia was built on the spirit of muhibbah or camaraderie and the responsibility lies with the government to make sure this remains so.

JJ RAY started her career with a mainstream publication. A non-conformist, she soon saw the barriers that went up whenever, through her writing, she tried to make the world a home for one and all.