Posted on 11/23/2017 9:55:36 AM PST by Simon Green
KUALA LUMPUR ― A Malaysian deputy minister on Thursday (Nov 23) claimed that atheism is a “very dangerous” ideology that goes against the country’s Federal Constitution.
Mr Asyraf Wajdi Dusuki, a deputy minister in the Prime Minister’s Department, said the ideology also goes against Malaysia’s Rukunegara that prescribes “Believe in God” as one of its tenets.
The Rukunegara is a set of national principles formulated after the May 13 racial riots in 1969 to uphold Malaysia’s diverse religious and ethnic backgrounds.
Mr Asyraf alleged that the freedom of religion in the Federal Constitution — which guarantees the freedom to worship — does not include the freedom to not believe.
“We have to understand that in the Malaysian context, our Federal Constitution states that the freedom of religion does not mean freedom from any religion because that is unconstitutional,” he said.
“This means we cannot incite someone to leave a religion or promote not having a religion. We cannot order or promote the belief of not having a religion — that is against the Federal Constitution.”
Despite the deputy minister’s assertion, Article 3(1) of the Federal Constitution only states that “Islam is the religion of the Federation; but other religions may be practised in peace and harmony in any part of the Federation.”
Meanwhile, Article 11(1) states that “Every person has the right to profess and practise his religion and propagate it”, subject to clause Article 11(4) that prohibits the propagation to Muslims.
Mr Asyraf, who is in charge of Islamic affairs, said the government can enact legal provisions it deemed necessary to prevent atheism from being practiced, especially when it is considered to be a threat to the sanctity of Islam.
“As for the non-Muslims, it (atheism) also goes against the laws of public order and morality,” he said.
“For instance, anyone who tries to spread ideologies and doctrines that promote atheism and similar beliefs, which tarnish the sanctity of other religions, can be charged under the Sedition Act.”
In August, a photo of a gathering by the Kuala Lumpur chapter of Atheist Republic caused an uproar among some in the Muslim community after the meeting was highlighted by pro-Islamist blogs, leading to violent and death threats against the group’s members on social media.
Atheist Republic has over a million followers and supporters on social media, with hundreds of “consulates” worldwide including in neighbouring Indonesia and the Philippines.
Mr Asyraf said on Thursday that Putrajaya, together with Internet regulator Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission, have reported to Facebook the existence of groups spreading atheism, but the company would not block them.
This was because the groups’ accounts did not contravene any of Facebook’s rules and regulations.
Last year, Malaysia was rated as “grave violators” of the rights and treatment of the non-religious in the Freedom of Thought Report by the International Humanist and Ethical Union.
The report highlighted that it is illegal to advocate secularism or church-state separation in Malaysia, or such advocacy is suppressed; while identifying as an atheist or non-religious is either illegal or unrecognised.
Meanwhile, an opposition Member of Parliament blamed Putrajaya for the rise of atheism in the country.
Mr Khalid Samad from Parti Amanah Negara (Amanah) said the government’s “corrupt actions” and use of religion as a political tool were reasons why people lost their faith.
“People leave religion when they see that it is being used as a tool by a government that is corrupt. People see that religion is no longer relevant nor does it bring good to the people, and because of this, the young are disputing religion,” he said.
Malaysia is a pretty screwed up place - I think it’s run by Muslims.
Of course the U.S. Constitution which mainly creates and limits the feds, has NO restrictions against an individual except you can’t own a slave (Amendment 13).
Shades of Mahathir Mohammad except he wanted to get rid of Christians as well.
Malaysia should be more concerned about keeping their airplanes in the air.
Islam is definitely Malaysia’s state religion, although the population is about 60 percent Mahometan overall. Second biggest religious demographic is Buddhism, at close to 20 percent; Christianity comes in third at about 9 percent.
Tis is pretty much true for the US Constitution. It is based on belief in God and provides for the free exercise of religion. Te USC makes no provision for atheism. Atheism is not protected and cannot be used to fetter the practice of religion.
The USC explicitly forbids restrictions on religious activity. This includes religious activity under color of government. While there may well be legitimate disagreement between Methodist, Catholic, and Jew as to specific practices within government there can be no assertion that government must adhere to an atheist doctrine.
Atheism has no place at the table of religious discussion.
it deemed necessary to prevent atheism from being practiced
Atheism is not protected
Atheism is not protected. The Constitution claims for the existence of God. Atheism does not.
Atheism is not protected. The Constitution claims for the existence of God. Atheism does not.
Yep. Atheism is the absence of religion. The Constitution does not guarantee the absence of religion. If it did it would stand in opposition to religion. The government cannot be atheistic if it is to be constitutional.
Support for atheism as an expression of religion is Marxist doublethink.It is weaponized thought control aimed at creating a rationale for the destruction of religion in the name of religious freedom.
Congress shall make no law....
Have you ever been among those insisting atheism is a religion? That nonsense comes up regularly. At least I won’t see you in that crowd.
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