I refer to the letter Joy case not a battle between Islam and the rest.

I was disturbed to note that Dr Mazeni Alwi, chairperson of the Muslim Professionals Forum (MPF) could comment on the Lina Joy verdict in such a manner. Mazeni said:

'We laud the Federal Court's decision - upholding that of the Court of Appeal and the High Court - that the jurisdiction to change the religious status of a Muslim properly belongs to the Shariah Court.'

The fact that Lina Joy is a Christian and has been a practising one for 10 years, clearly puts her out of the jurisdiction of the Syariah courts. Freedom of worship is a constitutional right. The Syariah court does not have the authority to dictate a person's religious status because that would be unconstitutional.

Islam was not a religion which Lina embraced. Islam was imposed on her. She was regarded as a Muslim purely because of the constitutional definition of a 'Malay'. However, the constitution guarantees freedom of worship and as such Lina is free to embrace Christianity. Constitutionally, Lina ceased to be Malay when she renounced Islam but then that is only semantics.

The Syariah court's remit is strictly concerned with Muslim matters and cannot deal with Lina who is a Christian. Shockingly, the Federal Court has abdicated its responsibility to uphold the constitution and has denied Lina justice.