Bar says Jais has no power to regulate other faiths, its raid on the Bible Society was illegal

The Selangor Islamic Religious Department (Jais) has no powers to regulate other faiths and any encroachment is unconstitutional, the Malaysian Bar said tonight amid outrage over the state agency seizing Malay and Iban Bibles yesterday.

Malaysian Bar president Christopher Leong (pic) said Jais' action was "unnecessarily provocative and unwise" at a time when Malaysians should be working towards national reconciliation and harmony.

"It is alarming that the religious body or enforcement agency of one religion would purport to have jurisdiction or purview over other religions. This is not what is envisaged under the Federal Constitution," he said in a statement in Kuala Lumpur tonight.

His comments came a day after Jais raided the office of the Bible Society of Malaysia (BSM) and confiscated more than 300 copies of the Alkitab (Bahasa Malaysia bible) and Bup Kudus (Iban bible), and arrested the organisation's president and officer manager.

Both men are now scheduled to present themselves to Jais on January 10, 2014.

Leong noted that Jais had taken action under the Non-Islamic Religions (Control of Propagation Amongst Muslims) Enactment No 1 of 1988 of Selangor which provides that state law may control or restrict the propagation of any religious doctrine or belief among persons professing the religion of Islam.

"The purpose of the said Selangor Enactment is therefore an enactment against the propagation of other religions to Muslims or the proselytisation of Muslims," he said.

He cited section 9(1) of the Selangor enactment that says a person commits an offence if he, in any published writing, or public or broadcast speech or statement, uses any of the words listed in Part I of the Schedule “pertaining to any non-Islamic religion,” while section 9(2) provides that a non-Muslim commits an offence if he uses any of the expressions listed in Part II of the Schedule. Part I lists 25 Arabic words and Part II lists 10 Arabic phrases.

It is apparent that the provisions of sections 9(1) and (2) are general in nature and ambit, and are not confined to the purpose stated in the preamble of the said Selangor Enactment and to the limits proscribed in Article 11(4) of the Federal Constitution, he added.

Leong said these provisions purport to make it an offence to use the listed words or phrase and are general blanket prohibitions and offences, irrespective of whether the words or phrases are used in the course of, or for the purpose of propagation of a non-Islamic religion to Muslims.

"In such circumstances, resort to sections 9(1) and (2) would be ultra vires the said Selangor Enactment itself, as they go beyond the purpose and ambit of the said Selangor enactment as set out in its preamble, and as self-evident in its title.

"The impugned provisions are unconstitutional, inasmuch as they are unsupported by Article 11(4) of the Federal Constitution," he said.

The lawyer said Article 11(3) of the Federal Constitution provided for each religion to be self-regulatory to facilitate inter-religious harmony.

"It is therefore, unconstitutional for JAIS, an Islamic body or enforcement agency to have jurisdiction, powers and ambit over other religions or persons professing other religions.

"This encroachment is, in any event, against the spirit of the Federal Constitution," said Leong.

This meant, he said, that any authorisation under section 10 of the enactment, or any notification or gazette purporting to vest Jais with such jurisdiction or powers, "would be repugnant to the Federal Constitution".

In effect, Leong added, the raid, seizure and arrest by Jais was unconstitutional and illegal. - January 3, 2014.