PETALING JAYA: The Sultan of Selangor, Sultan Sharafuddin Idris Shah, has urged against politicising or debating the “Allah” issue pending the Conference of Rulers’ final decision on the matter.
Sultan Sharafuddin said this is to safeguard the country’s harmony and to guarantee the economic and social stability of Malaysia.
He said he had spoken to Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim on the government’s withdrawal of its appeal against the High Court ruling on a Sarawakian’s right to use the word “Allah” in her religious learning.
“The prime minister agreed with my suggestion to raise this issue with the National Council of Islamic Affairs (MKI) in August, followed by the Conference of Rulers in October,” he said in a statement.
He also said that since the issue touches on religious sensitivities, it needs to be settled immediately by Putrajaya in a wise and responsible manner.
“The solution for this issue needs to be devised carefully and in accordance with the Federal Constitution, which outlines Islam as the religion of the federation, without prejudicing the rights of others to practise their faiths peacefully,” Sultan Sharafuddin added.
Meanwhile, Anwar said in a statement that he has explained to the sultan that the government’s position is to respect state laws and the position of Malay Rulers as custodians of the Islamic faith in their respective states.
He also said the government respects the Conference of Rulers’ decision-making roles on Islamic matters at the federal level.
He reiterated that the government acknowledged the existing policy which limits the use of “Allah” to Muslims on the peninsula, while providing conditional relaxation of usage to non-Muslims in Sabah and Sarawak.
“I respect His Highness’ view, which is in line with the Cabinet’s decision in May that the issue of non-Muslims in Sabah and Sarawak using the word ‘Allah’ needs to be fine-tuned and explained to the National Council for Islamic Religious Affairs, which advises the conference,” he said.
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