Article 11 in the news

Article 11 in the Malaysian Federal Constitution states that all citizens have the right to freedom of religion. On 23rd February 2009, it was reported that Datuk Seri Mohamed Nazri Aziz, Minister in the Prime Minister's Department, said that there is nothing to stop a Muslim from leaving the religion of Islam. However, the existing legal provisions must apply to the intending apostate before he is able to qualify under the law. (Source: The Edge Daily, 23rd February 2009. Government cannot stop a Muslim from conversion if procedures adhered, no plans to amend Article 11. URL : http://www.theedgedaily.com/cms/content.jsp?id=com.tms.cms.article.Article_a2934d82-cb73c03a-1a8402c0-b3e62339)

On the 24th of February 2009, Datuk Seri Mohamed Nazri Aziz clarified his statement when he said that Muslims cannot renouce Islam at will as it would cause chaos within the country. Instead laws must be complied with. He clarified that there were merely procedures to comply with. (Source: The Edge Daily, 24th February 2009. Nazri: Muslims cannot convert at will. URL: http://www.theedgedaily.com/cms/content.jsp?id=com.tms.cms.article.Article_a63531d0-cb73c03a-1a8402c0-70f169ca)

Bernama reported that the Government had no plans to amend Article 11. (Source: Bernama, 23rd February 2009. No plan to amend article 11(1) - Nazri. URL: http://www.bernama.com/bernama/v5/newsgeneral.php?id=391666 )

The Star reported on 24th February 2009 that Article 11(1) of the Federal Constitution does not cover Muslims. (Source: The Star, 24th February 2009. Clause doesn't cover Muslims. URL: http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2009/2/24/parliament/3330271&sec=parliament)

The question in this country is how many Muslims actually wish to change their religion. Information will have to be obtained in good time.

Inspired By Great People @ CRIEnglish.com

1. Today I stumbled across the wonderful site of CRIEnglish.com, which is operated by China Radio International. One of the most important sections on the site is the "China's Champions" column. Fuelled by curiosity, I had to look at the archives. Amongst others, I read about Zhang Huamei, Xie Hailong, and Wang Changqing.
2. Zhang Huamei is a lady from Wenzhou, China, who has the distinction of holding the first business licence in China. In 1978, China's government initiated the Reform and Opening Up Policy. She became self-employed when she could not find employed. Her business began simply, selling colourful trinkets and fashionable accessories not available in the state-owned stores. She was approached by a government official to register for a business licence in 1978. After much thought, she agreed. She has been self-employed for the last 28 years.
3. China Daily reports that during the late 1970's and the early 1980's, some business people were thrown into prison during crackdowns on speculators and profiteers. Zhang Huamei's friends and acquaintances too would pretend not to know her because they despised profiteers and speculators at that time. Despite that, the new policy succeeded in breeding a new generation of successful businessmen.
4. Xie Hailong was famed for his photographs of poor children in rural areas who were desperate for education. He was inspired to his mission of photographing the poor children when he was told by a friend that his photographs of his child were charming, but photography should provoke thought. After much thought, he made it his mission to take pictures of children in rural areas. At that time, poverty forced many children to stop studying. His photographs were used time and time again in the fundraiser "Project Hope", which since its inception has raised 2 billion yuan in donations.
5. Xie Hailong's works are in black and white and at times grainy. Despite that, there is no denying the quality of the works. Amongst other accolades, he is presently Director of Beijing Photographers' Association. The most famous of his is that of a girl, Su Mingjuan, hunched over her books and staring wide eyed at the camera. It is called "I want to go to school". It was this photograph that became the face of Project Hope.
6. Wang Changqing is credited with the resuscitation of Shaolin and other martial arts. In 1928, various important texts were burned by a warlord. Wang Changqing was a student in the Shaolin temple until the age of 12. He later became a doctor and served in the army. After retiring from the army, Wang Changqing practised martial arts at the Shaolin temple. He found an old monk, Yong Xiang, with a lung infection. He took care of the monk and nursed him back to health. When Wang wanted to return to his home, the monk gave him a bag of scripts. They were copies of the important texts that he had copied by hand in 1927. Wang Changqing recognised the significance of this and went all out to seek out practitioners of martial arts who had trained at Shaolin temple.
7. Wang Changqing's marriage suffered and as a result, he divorced. Nevertheless he kept on with his efforts. He was fortunate to meet and marry his second wife, Xu Qinyan, who also practised Kung Fu. He has written many books, the most famous of which is the Shaolin Encyclopedia (co-authored by his wife, Xu Qinyan). He believes that martial arts belongs to all people on this earth and has continuously promoted the art.
8. Of the three people above, two have achieved greatness or recognition because of their contributions to society. The other, Chang Huamei, is celebrated because of her representation of the economic success of the country. In some way or other, they have all been part of the history of the country.
9. It is undeniable that the minority races of my homeland, located just south of Thailand and just north of Singapore, have played a role in its journey to where it is today. Yet it may be a well-founded fear that future generations may not be able to know what role the minority races have played in our nation. We were here many years ago, from before the years of Merdeka. My own grandmother was a Straits born Chinese, whose family had been in Malaya for many generations. I have no doubt that members of the Chinese community have been an important factor in the success of this nation.

PEWARIS

PEWARIS is an NGO which is pro-ISA and claims to defend a certain religion. Malaysians should take an interest in them because they have made certain statements which can lead to friction between members of society. Of note is their latest press statement dated 26th January 2009 which called upon Samy Velu and members of the Indian community to not attend the funeral of the recently dead Kugan. The rest of their blog can be accessed at: http://pewarisummah.blogspot.com