The threat appeared to have been made by an official of the domestic trade ministry, who said “no-pork” signs did not mean a restaurant was classified as halal.
He raised the possibility of action under the Trade Descriptions Act for purportedly attempting to confuse Muslims through the use of Quranic verses and objects.
“Consumers must remember the ‘pork free’ sign does not mean it is halal. So don’t be deceived if there are many Muslims eating in that restaurant,” according to the ministry’s enforcement director, Mohd Roslan Mahayudin, as quoted in the Berita Harian daily.
“Consumers must be cautious on the definition of halal-certified food,” he was quoted as saying.
However, Berita Harian also reported that a restaurant operator explained that the “pork free” sign was a way of telling its consumers that it does not serve dishes with pork and that it had not applied for halal certification from Jakim, the federal Islamic affairs department.
Zaid: A sin for Muslims but not against the law
Former law minister Zaid Ibrahim, commenting on today’s report, pointed out on Twitter: “Is there a law that says Muslims must eat halal food? It’s a sin to eat non halal food, but it’s not against the law. It’s a sin to commit adultery but not against the Penal Code.”
He said the ministry’s director must understand the difference, adding: “Anyway food is non-halal in many ways. Jakim is only interested in the slaughter,” and pointed asked: “What about food obtained from stolen money?”
Berita Harian had quoted Mohd Roslan as saying that Jakim’s halal certification was not easy to obtain, with several criteria to be met. “The chef must be clean from all dirt. A restaurant is not necessarily halal just because it doesn’t serve pork,” he was reported as saying.
The issue appeared to have arisen from a 2014 complaint by the Malaysian Islamic Consumer Association about misuse of halal certificates and the appearance of “no pork” and “pork free” signs.
The association’s head, Nadzim Johan, was quoted as saying: “The issue of halal is a much talked about matter…besides the halal certification which has been constantly exploited by certain parties… now we have this ‘no pork’ sign that is raising all sorts of perceptions and different meanings”.
He had urged the Federation of Malaysian Consumer Associations to take action against restaurants with “no pork” signs, for creating doubts about whether their premises meet Jakim’s criteria.
“Maybe they feel the sign of ‘no pork’ and ‘pork-free’ shows a restaurant is halal but this is incorrect as the halal certification comes from Jakim only,” he said.
Berita Harian also said that only one of 10 restaurants at a shopping mall in Kuala Lumpur displayed Jakim’s halal certification, while the others only had the “no pork” sign.