In US and Europe, government funds (otherwise known as taxpayers' money) are not used to construct houses of worship, unlike Malaysia. As a communist country, China should be commended for allowing mosques to exist.

Edmund Burke Fan lamented in a letter to malaysiakini , ' Don't expect religious equality ', that a mosque in Dublin was compelled to occupy the space of a former church. Maybe the writer is missing the point here. One should view the Dublin case as locals being gracious enough to allow a local unused church to be converted into a mosque. For such a well-travelled person, EBF has missed the point that Muslims have the freedom to propagate their religion and build new mosques; unlike in Malaysia and other 'Islamic' countries that have strict laws against proselytising, unless it is to proselytise Islam.

On the issue of sex shops being located close to mosques as EBF mentioned, this is not the fault of the authorities. There are also churches close to sex shops and pubs. It is an example of how non-discriminatory the institutions of western governments are. Is it their fault then for not fixing up sorry looking masjid but not doing the same for other religions?

There are many beautiful magnificent mosques all over Asia, US, UK and Europe. Why EBF chooses to dwell and take offence when sighting a humble masjid is perplexing. Particularly so when Malaysian authorities have an unspoken policy of disallowing the construction of non-Muslim houses of worship.

The neverending Shah Alam controversy has resulted in court action as a last resort to obtain final approval to construct a new church. This is a reflection of the sad state of our so-called 'religious freedom'. I do not recall non- bumiputera protesting to the authorities about dilapidated temples, since that is the least of their concerns.

Or am I the one missing the religious dimension contained in a clause in the Pact of Umar: "We shall not build, in our cities or in their neighborhood, new monasteries, churches, convents, or monks' cells, nor shall we repair, by day or by night, such of them as fall in ruins or are situated in the quarters of the Muslims".