Freedom of religion, not freedom from religion, says Putrajaya
Asyraf Wajdi Dusuki says atheism has no place in the constitution.
“We must understand that in the Malaysian context, freedom of religion does not mean freedom from any religion,” the senator told the Dewan Rakyat today, in response to a question from Dr Siti Mariah Mahmud (Amanah-Kota Raja) on the government’s efforts to curb atheism among Malaysians.
In August, Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Shahidan Kassim warned of action against a group of Malaysians who were part of the group “Atheist Republic”, following threats on them in the social media.
Asyraf said attempts to block social media pages promoting atheism had been in wane, adding that Facebook had also refused to take down such pages despite a request from the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC).
Asyraf said atheism attacked other religions, saying this would contravene laws on public order.
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He added that atheism was also against the principle of “Belief in God”, one of the five principles of the Rukun Negara.