31st October 2006
The Christian Federation of Malaysia is troubled and deeply concerned by the report that appeared in the New Sunday Times (Oct.22 p.16) where a foreign couple was traumatised in the wee hours of the morning when officers of the Kedah State Religious Department stormed into their Langkawi condominium and rudely interrogated them.
We are further told that Mr. Randall Barnhart and his wife Carole (both in their 60’s and married for over 42 years) did inform the officers that they were Christians and therefore were not subject to the rude intrusion of Islamic Officers into their private premises. But that did not stop the intimidating behaviour of the Officers.
The CFM views such incidents with great seriousness. Just recently our Prime Minister refuted allegations that Malaysia is a ‘police state”. An incident such as this, and many other similar actions in the past by over-zealous religious vigilante groups in the country point to the contrary.
The incident has given the country a bad image. It is also a concern to the CFM that non-Muslims are subject to the harassment of state religious officers.
In the light of this, the CFM strongly suggests;
that the Cabinet to look into the matter and take whatever steps deemed necessary to reassure all persons in Malaysia that the privacy of citizens shall always be protected and nobody should be subjected to harassment by Islamic Religious Officers.
that the Kedah State Religious Department offer an official apology to the couple, and
that the Minister of Tourism offer an official apology and does everything to assure tourists and all Malaysians in the country that they will not be subject to vigilante moral policing by religious officers.
The CFM joins the voices of the other concerned groups in the country in affirming the personal freedom to every person as guaranteed in our Constitution and no person should be subject to laws other than what is sanctioned by our Parliament.
The Executive Committee