There is some perverse logic working in Malaysia. In the very early days of the flight MH370 saga, the civil aviation chief had used footballer Mario Balotellis name and likeness to describe how two Iranians managed to use stolen passports belonging to Europeans to pass through Malaysian immigration. Of course, nobody understood what he was trying to say then, and assumed that those holding the stolen passports looked like Balotelli. Or that the civil aviation chief thinks Balotelli is Iranian, not Italian. But what can we say about Selangor Islamic Religious Department (Jais) deputy director-general Ahmad Zaki Arshad who justified his departments operations to check if a bride at a Hindu wedding ceremony this past week is actually a Muslim. He said that they had to investigate but not necessarily punish anyone just because an individual has a Muslim name. For example, if Rafael Nadal comes to Malaysia and goes to a church, we have to investigate because he has a Muslim name. So please do not jump to conclusions, he said in referring to the world number one Spanish tennis player. As it is, the United States conducts stricter checks on people who have Muslim-sounding names due to terrorism fears, Malaysia might as well follow suit but to keep these peoples faith intact. After all, our flags are similar. Why would anyone think that Rafael Nadal is a Muslim name? Would we then have to assume that the actress Salma Hayek is a Muslim too? Or for that matter, Colombian pop star Shakira? Wouldnt it scare away tourists or any other visitors if the Islamic authorities are suspicious of anyone whose name remotely sounds Muslim, or to be precise Arabic, and that they have to investigate and verify their faith? Especially as it is Visit Malaysia Year 2014, which has already been hit by the flight MH370 disappearance. Do we want to hassle people because of their name? As it is, the United States conducts stricter checks on people who have Muslim-sounding names due to terrorism fears, Malaysia might as well follow suit but to keep these peoples faith intact. After all, our flags are similar. There must be some perverse logic to Ahmad Zaki presuming that Nadal is a Muslim-sounding name. Because it is just plain ridiculous. Religious enforcers should spend more time ensuring Muslims have a better life instead of working on connecting names to a persons faith. Or would that be asking too much from them? – June 3, 2014.
Posted on: Tue, 03 Jun 2014 06:37:58 +0000
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