Acting PAS president Abdul Hadi Awang started disliking the politics of Umno since he was a primary schoolboy in Terengganu.
"As a primary school boy, I saw police breaking up PAS gatherings with tear gas. Later, I witnessed how an elected government of PAS in Terengganu was overthrown by Umno in 1961. I disliked all that. So, when I grew older, I decided to join PAS to defend the democratic rights and dignity of the people."
PAS was registered as a political party in 1951, four years after Abdul Hadi was born. When PAS came to power for the first time in Terengganu in 1959, he was only 12. In that year, PAS also came to power in Kelantan. It was the first general election held after Malaya gained independence from British colonialism.
In Terengganu, PAS won 13 state seats, Umno seven and the now defunct National Party four. In Kelantan, it won all but two seats out of 30, which went to Umno.
Two years later in October 1961, the PAS state government in Terengganu collapsed as a result of political and financial pressure mounted by the Umno federal government, and the desertion of some of its elected state representative to Umno. Abdul Hadi was 14 then.
38-year wait
PAS only regained the state government of Terengganu 38 years later in the 1999 general election, and it happened under the leadership of that primary school boy who saw how his people were treated by the police in the late 1950s and early 1960s, and had vowed to put a stop to it.
The boy grew up to obtain a Master's degree in Islamic jurisprudence from the Oxford of the Islamic world, the Al-Azhar University in Egypt. Prior to that, he obtained a scholarship from the Saudi Arabian government for his graduate studies.
It was with a mixture of nostalgia and pride that the Terengganu Menteri Besar related his childhood experience and how his political sentiments were formed, to senior journalists and editors of local and international media during a dinner at a leading hotel last Sunday.
Among those invited were Malaysiakini.com's Analysis Malaysia , Reuters, AFP, Associated Press, South China Morning Post, Utusan Malaysia, New Straits Times, The Star and the Chinese-language newspapers.
The guest of honour was veteran Malay-language journalist A Samad Ismail. Samad was an anti-colonial political activist who has been detained thrice under the Internal Security Act. He was also an editorial consultant of the New Straits Times .
People of the Book
The dinner-dialogue was also attended by other top PAS leaders, including Deputy Menteri Besar Mustapha Ali, vice-president Dr Hasan Ali, secretary-general Nasaruddin Mat Isa, youth chief Mahfuz Omar and member of parliament for Tumpat, Kamarrudin Jaafar.
Asked whether he is aware of attempts to portray PAS and himself as "anti-Christian" and "anti-Catholics", Abdul Hadi reiterated the position that both he and the party are willing and ready to hold dialogues with any religious and political groups "to find common grounds, but not to exaggerate differences".
"In fact, all Muslims uphold the essential belief that those who believe in the message of Jesus are also 'People of the Book'," said the top theologian of the Islamic party.
In Islamic teachings, Jesus Christ is respected as Nabi Isa ; and the Quran refers to Jews, Christians and Muslims generically as 'People of the Book' ( Ahlul Kitab ) because they share, among other things, the belief in God, Angels and the Last Day.
The Catechism of the Catholic Church teaches that: "The plan of salvation also includes those who acknowledge the Creator, in the first place amongst whom are the Muslims; these profess to hold the faith of Abraham, and together with us they adore the one, merciful God, mankind's judge on the last day."
Multiethnic, multireligious reality
According to Abdul Hadi, before the PAS government banned gambling in the state, it had consulted representatives of non-Islamic religions and cultures, and all agreed that gambling is discouraged in their religions and cultures.
"On humanitarian ground, we gave the operators and workers of gambling businesses a grace period to wind up their businesses and find alternative employment.
"However, since representatives of non-Islamic religions and cultures insist that alcoholic consumption is permissible in their religions and cultures, we allow the sale and consumption of alcohol among non-Muslims," he clarified.
He added that the population of Terengganu, Kelantan, Perlis and Kedah are different in ethnic and religious composition from, for example, Penang.
"PAS recognises the multiethnic and multireligious reality in Malaysia. What is appropriate in the Muslim-predominated states may not be suitable to states predominated by non-Muslims, like Penang. PAS recognises that the post of the Chief Minister of Penang should be filled by a Chinese.
"No one race or group of religious followers in Malaysia can rule alone without the cooperation and confidence of other races and followers of other religions. PAS is fully aware of this reality in Malaysia," he emphasised.
National unity vs Malay unity
On whether Barisan Alternatif will face difficulties in maintaining good relations with non-Muslims after Chinese-majority DAP's withdrawal from the opposition front, Abdul Hadi said: "We always regard the withdrawal of DAP as stemming from its own internal problems."
According to him, the BA would continue to work hard to attract the support of non-Muslims, and there were many non-Muslims who campaigned for PAS in the two recent by-elections in Kedah.
Asked whether PAS would cooperate with Umno again to "restore Malay unity", he said that PAS is not interested in promoting 'Malay unity' if it is detrimental to 'national unity'.
"PAS is more interested in promoting national unity. Only within the framework of national unity would PAS talk about Malay unity."
As for PAS' image problem, of being "violent" and "radical", he reiterated that PAS will continue to participate in the process of parliamentary democracy, despite any "provocation" by their enemies.
"PAS has experienced many ups and downs in politics since 1951. History has shown that PAS is always committed to parliamentary democracy."
Asked about the popular comparison between his "radicalism" and the "moderation" of his predecessor, the late Fadzil Noor, Abdul Hadi replied: "People always praise the dead, and compare with those who are still alive.
"The late Fadzil Noor was certainly a moderate, but so am I. How could a moderate make a 'radical' his deputy?"
No racial discrimination
On socio-economic development and management in Terengganu, the Menteri Besar reiterated the party's stand that, under his administration, there is no racial discrimination in assisting the poor and weak.
"We have abolished quit rent for Muslims and non-Muslims alike, because we think having decent housing for everyone is a fundamental right of the people," he said, his tone and passion not unlike those of European social democrats.
In Terengganu under PAS, female public servants are given 90-day maternity leave as compared with 60 under the previous administration and non-PAS governments in other states. The state has also adopted a five-day working week.
However, he also said that the PAS government in Terengganu has inherited a huge amount of public debt from the previous Umno government.
Earlier in his speech, Abdul Hadi gave a standing invitation to all journalists, local and international, to visit Terengganu and Kelantan "to see for yourselves how things are managed there".
"We are not perfect, but we are also not as bad as people outside the states think."
During the dinner-dialogue, a press statement was also distributed to express the "full support" of PAS for Dong Jiao Zong and the Selangor Chinese Assembly Hall in their opposition to the government proposal to change the medium of instruction of Science and Mathematics to English in Chinese primary schools next year.
JAMES WONG WING ON is chief analyst of Strategic Analysis Malaysia (SAM) which produces the subscriber-based political report, Analysis Malaysia . Wong is a former member of parliament (1990-1995) and a former columnist for the Sin Chew Jit Poh Chinese daily. He read political science and economics at the Monash University in Melbourne, Australia. While in Sin Chew , he and a team of journalists won the top awards of Malaysian Press Institute (MPI) for 1998 and 1999.
