Critical Thoughts

The arrest of former Perlis Mufti, Dr Asri Zainul Abidin by officials of the Selangor Islamic Religious Department (JAIS) at a private function in a residential area on November 1 brings into question again the intellectual freedom in Malaysia, vis-à-vis Islam.

The excuse given by JAIS that Dr Asri did not have the religious credentials from JAIS to teach Islam runs counter to the spirit of intellectual freedom in the history of Islam. It also gives ammunition to JAIS’s detractors and critics over the years that the Department is nothing more than a tool of a small group of religious scholars who are bent on imposing their views on others. By raiding a religious talk by someone who was once a government Mufti, and who, to say the least, has the necessary academic qualifications to explain Islamic beliefs, JAIS has only shown that it is ill-equipped to take on its critics on an intellectual platform, and has to resort to high-handed tactics.

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Vindicated? I certainly think so.

Without PAS participation in the coalition, the DAP is nothing in Perak. It is true that PAS only has six seats in Perak and the PAS Commissioner for Perak have already stated in a press conference that they will accept the decision of the Sultan in determining who succeeds the post for Menteri Besar. The fact remains that there is no way that a non-Muslim can or should be allowed to become Menteri Besar, as one of the official duties as Menteri Besar is to advise the Sultan on Islamic matters.

It therefore boggles the mind as to the nature of this belligerent attitude from the DAP, just merely days after a historic win. Its very sad but I believe that if this situation is not resolved, PAS should consider forming a government with the Barisan Nasional opposition.