A Muslim woman is under investigation in Malaysia for uploading a 12-minute hateful rant against the Christian population of Malaysia on Facebook. The video, uploaded to a FB page named, “Puteri Mujahidah Wan Asshima Kamaruddin”, depicts a woman pledging to “destroy Christians” if they use the term “Allah” to mean God.
This hate-fueled rant comes in light of the Malaysian High Court’s decision to repeal a 35-year old government ban on the usage of the term “Allah” and three other Arabic terms by Christian publications.
The bigoted video managed to amass hundreds of thousands of views and thousands of shares on Facebook before it was taken down. In the video, the woman makes her beliefs clear. “We don’t want to share the word ‘Allah’ with people from other religions,” says the woman, further going on to refer to all non-Muslims as “heathens”.
“Please don’t make me come and destroy the Christian community,” the woman adds in her video rant, in what is being viewed by many people as a call for violence against local Christians, who comprise a little over 10 percent of Malaysia’s 32 million citizens. The reactions to the video were polarizing and mixed, with reactions ranging from support to strong condemnation.
According to an official at Malaysia’s Federal Crime Investigation Department, several elements in the Muslim woman’s video violate Malaysian law especially the incitement of racial or religious hatred. The decision from the Malaysian High Court raised concern for at least two ethnic Malay political parties, who urged to government to intervene and change the ruling.
Christian leaders in Malaysia have long advocated for a repeal on government’s ban on the usage of term “Allah” for non-Muslims. They argue that the term “Allah” has been incorporated into the Malay language and means God, and therefore is used as translation word for God in Bibles, Christian prayers etc. in the Malay language. In its ruling, the Malaysian High Court deemed the government ban on the usage of “Allah” by non-Muslims as unconstitutional.
“The court has now said the word Allah can be used by all Malaysians. Today’s decision entrenches the fundamental freedom of religious rights for non-Muslims in Malaysia” said Annou Xavier, the lawyer for the Plaintiff. However, this decision is expected to be challenged by the Government in a higher court.
In 2014, the Federal Court of Malaysia upheld the government ban following a legal challenge by the Roman Catholic Church, which had used the word Allah in its Malay-language newsletter. Therefore it remains to be seen whether the decision by the High Court, which is being considered as a landmark judgement for religious freedom in Malaysia, will be be upheld in a higher court or reversed.
