Johor sultan wants Putrajaya to proceed with appeal against 'Allah' ruling
Johor's Sultan Ibrahim Sultan Iskandar has called on Putrajaya to proceed with the appeal against the High Court ruling allowing non-Muslims to use the word "Allah" for religious and educational purposes.
He said "Allah" specifically referred to God as worshipped by Muslims - and that Muslim sensitivities needed to be considered in any rulings.
"As the head of Islam in Johor, I urge the federal government to appeal the (ruling)," the sultan said in a statement today.
He added that he would instruct the Johor Islamic Council to take...
Johor's Sultan Ibrahim Sultan Iskandar has called on Putrajaya to proceed with the appeal against the High Court ruling allowing non-Muslims to use the word "Allah" for religious and educational purposes.
He said "Allah" specifically referred to God as worshipped by Muslims - and that Muslim sensitivities needed to be considered in any rulings.
"As the head of Islam in Johor, I urge the federal government to appeal the (ruling)," the sultan said in a statement today.
He added that he would instruct the Johor Islamic Council to take any steps necessary to support an appeal.
The government filed an appeal against the ruling on Monday, but Sabah and Sarawak lawmakers have urged Putrajaya to withdraw it.
Last week, Kuala Lumpur High Court judge Nor Bee Ariffin ruled that the government erred in issuing the 1986 ban on the use of the word "Allah" by non-Muslims.
She said the directive had no statutory backing and was therefore illegal and irrational.
The ruling was made in a bid by Jill Ireland, a Melanau Christian who was seeking a declaration that her constitutional right to practice her religion was violated by the imposition of a restriction or ban on the import of educational materials.
The judge said there was no evidence the use of the word “Allah” by the indigenous Bahasa Malaysia-speaking Christian communities of Sabah and Sarawak for over 400 years has ever threatened public order.
Sultan Ibrahim, however, said a Johor fatwa prohibited non-Muslims from using the word "Allah".
"This fatwa means the use of 'Allah' by non-Muslims which are not in line with its true meaning as per Islamic teachings, are not allowed and prohibited," he said.
He added that state enactments also prohibited the use of "Allah" by non-Muslims except in ways allowed for by the law.
Besides the Johor sultan, Umno, PAS and several Muslim NGOs also wanted the High Court ruling appealed.
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