Herald row: Anwar holds Utusan responsible

PKR de facto leader accused Umno-owned newspaper Utusan Malaysia for inciting the Muslims over the court decision to allow Catholic weekly The Herald to use the term 'Allah' in its Bahasa Malaysia section.

He said that the newspaper had for “weeks and months” whipped the Malay community into a frenzy over the controversy, which erupted into several protests after Friday prayers yesterday.

“(They were) supported by the ruling establishment. Now you can organise demonstrations, without permits for the first time, but only for that particular occasion by the keris minister (Home Minister Hishammuddin Hussein).

“What happened? They actually encouraged people to resort to extremism and even become perpetrators of violence,” he said during a public forum in Petaling Jaya today.

Early yesterday morning, three churches in Petaling Jaya and Kuala Lumpur were hit with petrol bombs hours before the protests were scheduled to start.

Prominent scholar disagrees

One of the church was set ablaze in the brazen attack, believed to be the first of its kind in Malaysia.

Anwar called for calm and said that the reactions to the 'Allah' controversy was an “insult not only Malaysians but Muslims and Islam”.

Earlier, Anwar recounted his meeting with renowned Egyptian Muslim scholar Yusof Al-Qardawi, who expressed surprise that some Malaysian Muslims objected to non-Muslims using the term 'Allah'.

“I said no, not me (who objected), but some 'born-again' Muslims in Umno,” said Anwar, to the laughter of some 100 people in attendance.

Anwar said Yusof responded by saying that such a position was unjustifiable.

“There is nothing in the Quran and our historical legacy that can justify the banning (of non-Muslims from using) the word 'Allah',” he said.

'Selangor anthem quandary'

Anwar explained that it would make life extremely difficult in Arab countries if there was such a ban as the word is commonly used by both Muslims and non-Muslims there.

“In Arab countries, it is very usual for people to respond to questions (in this manner): Can you come to my house tomorrow for supper? Well, I'll have to think about it, insha'allah (God willing).

“Charge him in court!” cried Anwar mockingly, prompting another round of giggles from the audience.

Anwar also quipped that in Selangor, Menteri Besar Khalid Ibrahim is worried because non-Muslims may now be banned from singing the state anthem - 'Allah pelihara Sultan (God save the Sultan)'.

Anwar was speaking at the Global Issues Forum III on corruption at the Petaling Jaya Civic Centre, organised by the PKR International Bureau.