While the government is quick to censure other countries for practising discrimination against Muslims, PAS is of the opinion that the criticisms were mere rhetorics judging from the way Malaysia complied to demands by the US for terrorism suspect Ahmed Ibrahim Bilal.

According to the party's Youth wing, the surrendering of Ahmed to US officials is an act opposed to the government's frequent criticism against US policy with regard to Muslims and Muslim nations.

"The decision by the government is confusing and unnecessary considering that we have laws to deal with such matters," said PAS Youth chief Mahfuz Omar at a press conference in Kuala Lumpur today.

Ahmed, a former student at the International Islamic University in Gombak, was deported on Thursday morning after Malaysian authorities handed him over to US officials following the revocation of his American passport.

The deportation raised strong protests from several quarters as an application to declare his detention by Malaysian authorities illegal was pending before the Kuala Lumpur High Court.

No concrete evidence

According to Mahfuz, the government should have investigated the claims by the US government before surrendering Ahmed unceremoniously.

He said that based on the manner in which the US was pressing for war in Iraq, there is a likelihood that the accusations against Ahmed may be baseless.

"There was no concrete evidence. We have seen the US make accusations against Arab Muslims and Muslim nations (since the Sept 11 attacks)."

"Ahmed may have decided to surrender to Malaysian authorities in the hope of obtaining political asylum, knowing the government's expressed views on standing up for Muslim nations. Instead he was given up like a lamb to the slaughter house," Mahfuz added.

Mahfuz also criticised the government's decision to classify Ahmed as an illegal immigrant in spite of the fact that he had entered the country legally as a student.

"There should be differences drawn between his status and that of many other illegal immigrants who enter the country illegally without papers," he said.

If the government wanted to classify Ahmed as an illegal immigrant, it should then exercise its right to charge him under Malaysian laws, said Mahfuz.

"We have provisions under the Immigration Act. If the government needs a reason not to deport Ahmed unceremoniously, they could have insisted on trying him under our laws first before sending him over," he said, adding that this would give Ahmed more time to apply to other countries for asylum.

Memorandum to DPM

Mahfuz said that the incident had also exposed weaknesses in the country's internal security since US security forces first sounded the alert on the whereabouts of Ahmed after he was declared a wanted man by the US government.

"How is it that we are exposed to international espionage by other nations ? How can we feel safe when foreigners can infiltrate our country so easily ?" he questioned.

Mahfuz said a memorandum expressing these concerns and PAS disappointment over the government's decision to surrender Ahmed to US authorities will be sent to the deputy prime minister's office tomorrow.