Concerns over Rise of Salafism in Malaysia
Dr Syed Farid Alatas, an associate professor at the Sociology Department, National University of Singapore, expressed disbelief over the recent proposal by Kelantan to impose jail term and fine on Muslim men who miss Friday prayers for three consecutive weeks.
"I read that the Kelantan state government intended to fine Muslim men RM1,000 and sentence them to a year's jail if they skipped Friday prayers three times in a row.
"While I agree that society needs rules and regulations, it is immoral and unethical to propose such drastic action on those who do not perform Friday prayers regularly.
"There is an imbalance here as respect for the sanctity of personal life has been completely disregarded. This is bordering on coercion without taking civil liberties into account," he said at a roundtable discussion on the threat of religious fundamentalism held in Kuala Lumpur.
Syed Farid said even if all Muslim men in Kelantan were driven to performing Friday prayers, the question is whether they were sincere in performing the prayers or doing it out of coercion.
"How does the Kelantan state government intend to enforce this proposal if it is implemented? Spying will create a culture of fear and hypocrisy, as Muslims will pray simply for the sake of praying."
Syed Farid cited another example of a controversial fatwa issued by a former Saudi Arabian grand mufti that the sun orbited the earth instead of vice versa.
The fatwa was issued in 1966 by the late Sheikh Abdul Aziz Abdullah, who claimed that the sun orbited the earth, as the earth was fixed and stable.
"If left unchecked, Salafism or Wahhabism, will slowly erode the Malay culture. Many Salafi followers claim that most Muslims in the world are not Muslims," Syed Farid said.
"Salafi followers think like this simply because many Sunni or Shia Muslims do not practice the Islamic religion like them. The Salafis have rejected a great deal of Malay culture."
"Islamic rules and regulations should not interfere in the personal lives of Muslims, until they virtually intrude into their homes," he said, in a reference to close proximity or khalwat cases.
Syed Farid said another example of the Salafimation of Malaysia was Putrajaya's campaign last year to vilify and demonize Shia followers in the country.
"The Malay language newspapers were the worst of all the media as they printed lies and falsehoods about the Shias," he said.
Last year, Home Minister Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi had called on Islamic authorities to act against Shia followers in Malaysia.
He also accused PAS deputy president Mohamad Sabu of being a Shia adherent, prompting the latter to threaten legal action.
"I worry about what will happen to Malaysia as in their attempts to win the Malay vote, both Umno and PAS are trying to out-Islamize each other.
He said Islam was understood by Muslims to be a religion based on the middle way, with the concepts of justice and balance.
Other speakers at the roundtable discussion organized by the Islamic Renaissance Front (IRF) included IRF director Dr Ahmad Farouk Musa and Professor Dr Mohamad Tajuddin Mohamad Rasdi of the Department of Architecture, Faculty of Built Environment, Universiti Teknologi Malaysia.
Source: Malaysia Chronicle
