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The coalition of NGOs known as Article 11 is committed to embracing, upholding and pursuing the realization of the following principles as guaranteed by the Federal Constitution and Human Rights Conventions:
1. no citizen shall be discriminated on the basis of religion, race, descent, place of birth or gender
2. parents (both mother and father) are equal guardians and have equal say in all respects of the upbringing of children
3. children shall be protected from any form of discrimination on the grounds of religion and in all cases, the interests of children shall be paramount
4. the freedom of thought, conscience and belief for all persons shall be fully respected, guaranteed and protected
5. every citizen has a responsibility to condemn discrimination and intolerance based on religion or belief
6. every citizen has a responsibility to apply religion or belief in support of human dignity and peace
Article 11 is fully committed to upholding those fundamental rights for all Malaysians regardless of religion, race, descent, place of birth or gender.
Article 11 comprises:
1. All Women's Action Society (AWAM)
2. Bar Council Malaysia
3. Catholic Lawyers Society
4. Interfaith Spiritual Fellowship
5. Malaysian Civil Liberties Society, Protem Committee (MCLS)
6. Malaysian Consultative Council of Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism & Sikhism (MCCBCHS)
7. National Human Rights Society (HAKAM)
8. Pure Life Society
9. Sisters In Islam (SIS)
10. Suara Rakyat Malaysia (SUARAM)
11. Vivekananda Youth Movement, Seremban
12. Women's Aid Organization (WAO)
13. Women's Development Collective (WDC)
Background to the formation of Article 11
In April 2004, the civil High Court in Kuala Lumpur granted custody of 2 young boys aged 2 and 4 years to their Hindu mother. The judge imposed one condition - she was not to expose her sons to her Hindu faith. The 2 boys were previously, without her knowledge or consent, converted to Islam by her estranged husband, himself a recent convert to Islam. The same court has earlier dismissed an application by the Hindu mother for a declaration that the conversion of the 2 young children to Islam voilated her parental right to co-determine the religious upbringing of the children. The reasoning of the court was that it had no jurisdiction, as the children were now Muslim and the correctness or otherwise of their conversion was a matter for the Syariah Court.
Shamala's case brought home the point that the constitutional role of the civil High Court as the protector of the rights of the ordinary citizen was fast becoming illusory. The implications of this case, however, became the rallying force that drew together a small number of concerned NGOs and members of civil society. This group noted that besides Sharmala's case, there were other cases that had impacted the right of belief and the right to practise one's belief as guaranteed under Article 11 of the Federal Constitution. By May 2004, Shamala's case had given life to a coalition of NGOs, which has come to be known as Article 11.
Joint secretariats of Article 11 are WAO and SIS.