Boy caned for bringing pork to school
MALAYSIA'S parliament this week debated whether or not it was right for teachers to cane a 10-year-old boy for bringing pork to school.The Malaysia Star reported the argument centered on whether the boy, who was caned 10 times across the hand for eating a home-cooked meal of fried rice with pork, is Muslim or Christian. If the boy was Christian he would not have broken any rules by eating pig products.
Angela Jabing said her son Basil was disciplined for eating a non-Halal meal. She is a Christian and her husband, Beginda Minda, has denied being a Muslim.
The Star reported that a decree issued by the National Fatwa Council means that if either parent is Muslim the child must be Muslim.
"I admit I was a Muslim before. But in 1999, I changed my religion. Now I am a non-Muslim," Beginda said.
The government is now investigating whether Beginda is a Muslim or non-Muslim.
"Only after this can conclusions be drawn on why his son was caned," said government minister Datuk Seri Nazri Abdul Aziz.
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Boy's pork lunch sparks religious tensions in Malaysia
("EarthTimes," November 12, 2010)
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia - The controversy surrounding the case of a boy who was caned for taking pork to school for lunch has threatened to spark religious tensions in mainly-Muslim Malaysia.
Earlier this month, a school's assistant principal caned 10-year-old Basil Beginda from the eastern state of Sarawak for taking fried rice with pork to school for his lunch.
Consuming pork is not permissible for followers of Islam, which is Malaysia's official religion, but there are no laws that forbid non-Muslim students from eating it in schools or public places.
The boy's outraged mother lodged a complaint with the state's education department, and the assistant principal - who is Muslim - subsequently issued an apology.
However, the case has sparked fierce debate on the rights of religious minority groups in Malaysia.
Non-Muslims, comprised mostly of Christians, Buddhists and Hindus, make up just over a third of Malaysia's 28-million population.
Basil's case has revived longstanding claims by minority religious groups that their rights to practise freely have been threatened under the Muslim-dominated government.
In the last two days, debates in Parliament have skirted around the legality of the assistant principal's act, and instead have been centred around Basil's religion.
Basil's father, Beginda Anak Minda, claimed he legally converted from Islam 1999. His wife, who is a Christian, raised their son as a Christian.
However, a lawmaker claiming to know Beginda said the man was legally still Muslim, resulting in the government calling on the National Religious Department to investigate Beginda's religious status.
If Beginda lacks the legal papers to show he had converted to Christianity, he will be considered still a Muslim, and according to Malaysia's Islamic decree, his son is automatically also a Muslim and therefore forbidden to consume pork.
The response in blogs and chat rooms to the case has been strong, with many Muslims and non-Muslims condemning the punishment and expressing outrage that no action has been taken against the assistant principal.
"The real issue here is not whether the boy is Muslim or not. The issue is the caning of a child for bringing the food of his choice to school," wrote an online commentator who identified himself as Colin.
"The antics of some extremists are bordering on the ridiculous, and now they are bringing it to the school," wrote Lynn, another reader.
While the government takes great pains to project an image of a moderate Muslim society, critics say there is a growing wave of radical Islamism.
Religious tensions reached their highest point earlier this year, when nine churches were fire-bombed or vandalized in one of the country's worst spates of religious violence.
Reports of Islamic authorities seizing the bodies of non-Muslims for Islamic burial rites based on claims that the deceased were Muslims - even when there was no proof of those claims - have also riled minority religious groups.
Earlier this year, the government set up an interfaith committee of religious leaders in the hope of easing the rising tensions, but critics said the panel is unlikely to resolve disputes as its recommendations are not legally binding.
外 交部长阿尼法阿曼日前透露，曾卷入大马驻美大使馆支付440万令吉予美国说客杰克阿博拉莫夫（Jack Abramoff，左图右者），以安排前首相马哈迪与前美国总统布什会面丑闻的前大马驻美大使嘉沙里锡卡力（Ghazzali Sheikh Abdul Khalid） 有望重做冯妇，再次出任这份优差。
林吉祥（右图）表示，阿尼法没有理由不知道，前两任外交部长赛哈密及莱士雅丁在任时，尽管“布城4楼”支持嘉沙里重新受委为马驻美大使，但是却受到我国外交部及华盛顿的反对。
《当今大马》曾在2006年
林吉祥也引述前美驻马大使约翰梅洛（John Mellot）于2008年8月的公开言论，证明嘉沙里不适合再任马驻美大使。
另外，针对两次内阁改组皆不受青睐的前科学、工艺及创新部长贾玛鲁丁（Jamaluddin Jarjis，左图）也是4名有望成为下任马驻美大使的人选之一，林吉祥同样提出质疑。