We refer to the Malaysiakini report Bibles confiscated by Customs Dept .

The Centre for Independent Journalism (CIJ) opposes the recent confiscation of Bibles in the Indonesian language (Bahasa Indonesia) in Kuching, Sarawak because they used the term ‘Allah’ for ‘God’ in the text. The confiscation is another example of abuse of the Printing Presses and Publication Act (PPPA) 1987 to control public access to publications.

The home ministry has confiscated 15,000 copies of the Bibles since September 2008. Under the PPPA, the home ministry is empowered to restrict the sale and entry of or ban publications that are deemed prejudicial to or likely to be prejudicial to ‘public order, morality, security, and public or national interest.’ The translation, using the term ‘Allah’ is a controversial issue in Malaysia.

But the lack of definition for these conditions has meant that publications that challenge the views propagated by the government are also targeted. Under the same law, government officials can easily ignore demands by the affected person or group to explain why action was taken against them. Writers whose books are banned are often not informed.

Publishers are vulnerable to unannounced restriction on the sale and import of titles, even if the titles have been allowed before. The public and civil society are kept in the dark as to who and what are the credentials of these people who decide for the nation what can and cannot be read.

In the case of the Bibles, even non-citizens like the migrant Christians from Indonesia are affected when their access to religious text are denied.

PPPA imposes a great burden upon the public to seek redress when their rights are affected. The legal cases of Sisters-in-Islam (SIS) to challenge the ban on its book, and the Catholic weekly ‘Herald’ to challenge the prohibition in using the term ‘Allah’, illustrate the daunting efforts in order to pursue one's rights.

The PPPA should be repealed in accordance to the protection of democratic rights and the promotion of transparency and accountability. We call for government to return the Bibles to the importers and to stop the arbitrary confiscations of publications.

The writer is executive director, Centre for Independent Journalism.