your say 'Yi Min's case should have been resolved by both parents. It's a marriage and family issue, not a religious one.'

Can a 7-year old declare faith?

Swipenter: Fatimah Foong Abdullah is using her daughter to punish and extract revenge on her ex-husband and father of Tan Yi Min, now Eilliyah Foong Abdullah. Whatever problems they have, she has no right to use her daughter in such a cruel manner.

Can a seven-year-old declare faith? Yes, if the religion is Islam. These religious bigots don't give a hoot whether it is proper or not as long as they get a new 'adherent'.

Ashoka: Where was the mother for the last three years before she kidnapped the kid from her father? The fact that she abandoned the child for such a long time will make her a irresponsible mother and increase her chances of losing the child in a civil court.

So the easiest solution for her was to convert and then convert the child, and the entire government machinery will back her up. I feel sorry for the father even though I am a Muslim mother.

CarL Anchiau: It is so sad that Tan Yi Min has become a pawn in the fight between her father and mother. Whatever may the reason (or reasons) for both parents to part ways when they once saw in each other their partner for life, now they are so incensed to take each other's life - however in so doing, Foong had taken away the life of her daughter.

Dear Malaysians, please do not take away the lives of our children. Children are a gift from the Almighty (whichever faith one may believe in) and when parents part ways, the well-being of the children are surely the most important consideration.

By so blatantly converting Yi Min faith when she is surely not in a competent age speaks of the hate that Foong has in her heart. (Some may say it is fear, I call it stupidity). In time to come, she will surely regret this decision when tempers cool and she comes to her senses but alas it will be too late because in Bolehland as it stands today, Yi Min's fate will be like in ‘Hotel California' - your mom may get you in, but you will never be able to come out.

Hopefully Yi Min will grow up not hating her mom and dad for what they had done - for being so selfish, just thinking about their own desires (interests). I have no problems with the Islamic faith, only with the way how conversion are handled in Bolehland.

When a man/woman (often bringing their children without consent of the other parent) convert to Islam for any other reason apart from the belief in the Supreme Being, then the religous councils must subject themselves to a more stringent set of criteria.

Think deeply. God is watching.

Temenggong: While Hindraf was born to specifically address these kinds of issues affecting the community like body snatching, temple demolitions and forced conversions, thereby contributing to the political tsunami of 2008, it is strange and lamentable that Chinese groups are mute over Tan Min Yi and other such basic human rights issues.

Chinese-based parties like MCA, Gerakan and most of all, the formerly vocal DAP, are a disappointment, to say the least.

YF: Can a seven-year old declare faith? The answer is yes. Provided that the seven-year old child has lived and witnessed both her parents practise their faith and has been well-educated to what that faith teaches.

My kids accepted Christ as their personal saviour at the ages of between four and five. They have known who Christ is since the day they began to comprehend who God is, and that took a year or two.

However in Yi Min's case, it's an obvious doubtful matter. Was Yi Min exposed to Islam before she converted? Was she eating pork the day before she was snatched or wearing some religious items on her? Then it's obvious her conversion is nothing but a desperate attempt to enforce one's religion on another, and in this case, shamefully (yet again) on a poor helpless child.

Truly, Yi Min's case should have been resolved by both parents, not via these immature folks. It's a marriage and family issue, not a religious one. Unfortunately for poor Yi Min the rift has become even more complicated.

And the saddest part is, Yi Min would long for both mommy and daddy to come back together again. It takes two hands to make a clap, so both daddy and mommy are equally responsible for creating this mess. Swallow pride, learn to forgive and sort this out for Yi Min's sake.

P Dev Anand Pillai: If the Malay problem is solved, then we will not have this backroom manoeuvres. Till then, it will be a task. Umno and PAS seem to be planning something, isn't it about time that the non-Malay parties in the BN thought about pulling out?

Chia Wee Yan: Of course a seven-year-old is unable to declare his/her 'faith', nor there is any necessity to do so. Children who have been exposed to a certain 'faith' from the time they were born probably think they have that faith at the age of seven years.

The majority of them will grow up continuing in that particular faith, but a significant proportion will realise that what they believe in when they are mature adults may not be what their parents/parent believe in.

Singa Pura Pura: Woe be to the judge, politicians and other opportunists if they had decided the custody of Yi Min against her very welfare and well-being. Politics and religion are not considerations to be taken into account in deciding to whom the custody of a child should be given.

As long ago as in 1865, Sir John Romilly MR, in Austin v Austin, offered this eminently civil advice: "No thing, and no person, and no combination of them, can, in my opinion, with regard to a child of tender years, supply the place of a mother, and the welfare of the child is so intimately connected with its being under the care of the mother, that no extent of kindness on the part of any other person can supply that place.

"It is the notorious observation of mankind that the loss of a mother is irreparable to her children, and particularly so if young. If that be so, the circumstances must be very strong indeed to induce this court to take a child from the guardianship and custody of her mother."

 

The above is a selection of comments posted by Malaysiakini subscribers. Only paid subscribers can post comments. Over the past one year, Malaysiakinians have posted over 100,000 comments. Join the Malaysiakini community and help set the news agenda. Subscribe now .