Kuala Lumpur: A Perikatan Nasional party leader has called on the Education Ministry to ban controversial Islamic preacher Firdaus Wong from public schools because he poses a danger to non-Muslim students.
This comes following a recent video in which Firdaus talks about converting non-Muslim teenagers to Islam secretly and without the consent of their parents.
According to M Suthan, Malaysian Indian People’s Party national information chief, Firdaus’ remarks were illegal and insensitive to the feelings of non-Muslim parents.
“Who says children between the ages of seven and 17 are allowed to convert (to another religion) without their parents’ permission? “(This is) a dangerous and misleading 3R (race, religion and royalty) statement by Ustaz Firdaus.”
“What’s next? Can we also marry these underage kids off without their parents’ approval too? Where do we draw the line?” he asked in a video posted on TikTok.
Firdaus Wong’s Covert Conversions Remarks Termed ‘Unconstitutional’, ‘Seditious’
Last week, lawyer Rajesh Nagarajan called the comments by controversial religious preacher Firdaus Wong, advocating the covert conversion of minors to Islam, unconstitutional and a violation to the Sedition Act 1948.
Nagarajan told Scoop that Article 12(4) of the Federal Constitution confirms that the parents should determine a minor’s religion.
“In other words, Firdaus is encouraging people to do something illegal. Just imagine someone openly telling others to commit rape and murder. It’s a very disgusting and low-class thing to do,” Rajesh said.
Further, Rajesh said that Firdaus’ remarks could not only potentially violate the Constitution, but the preacher’s comments may have also breached other laws.
Potential Legal Consequences
According to Rajesh, Firdaus could face charges under Section 233 of the Communications and Multimedia Act 1998, which prohibits the use of network facilities to transmit offensive communications.
Firdaus could be charged under Section 233 of the Communications and Multimedia Act, 1998, which prohibits the use of network facilities to transmit objectionable messages, according to Rajesh.
“What Firdaus said may also be seditious, and action can be taken under Section 4(1) of the Sedition Act 1948,” Rajesh added.
Row Over Firdaus Wong’s Offensive Remarks
Earlier, Firdaus Wong had said it is hypocritical to politicise the conversion of minors to Islam as the same questions are not raised about conversion to other religions.
Firdaus Wong said this in response to civil society group Global Human Rights Federation (GHRF) which expressed concern over the preacher’s video on TikTok in which he can be seen explaining to a man how non-Muslim children could covertly be converted to Islam.
Firdaus Wong Makes Claims of Double Standards
He told Scoop that some non-Muslim children are curious about Islam because the religion is “attacked on the news”.
“They (children) did their own research and found that the religion is good and there’s truth to it, unlike how it’s portrayed by the media. Besides that, another factor is they socialise (with other Muslims) and notice the logic of having faith without an object to worship, as well as how devoted Muslims are.”
He also said the controversy and criticism over his comments in the TikTok video demonstrated a double standard against Islam.
“Many teenagers were converted to other religions, but we rarely hear complaints from parents. Why is it politicised when it involves Islam?”
When asked if the situation was being reversed, Firdaus replied that it would be illegal.
GHRF’s Call for Investigation
In response to Firdaus’ video, the GHRF had previously asked religious authorities and the Ministry of Education to investigate allegations that non-Muslim students were forced to convert to Islam.
Its president S Shashi Kumar claimed this violated the prerogative of parents to determine the religion of their children under 18.
He added that the organisation had filed numerous complaints against the preacher but the police have not taken any action.
ALSO READ: What Did Firdaus Wong Say About Converting Non-Muslim Minors to Islam?