An Open Letter to the group of ‘25 Prominent Malays’ – Farouk A. Peru

Firstly, I must humbly apologise for addressing this letter to the group of "25 Prominent Malays".

I did not think that this moniker was self-imposed but it was the only reference I had from The Star Online and so it must suffice.

I thank you all from the bottom of my heart for your voice of reason and moderation.

In the last few decades, Islam in Malaysia is on a steady slide towards fundamentalism and even violence. This was not the case prior to that period.

The Malay's version of Islam had always been tempered by our own local culture and so we retained that beautiful spirit of moderation and acceptance. I therefore support the intents of your initiative fully.

If you will permit me, I must take issue with the solutions you proposed in your letter. You are right of course to assert the supremacy of the Federal Constitution and the fact that the minister in question had gone over his limit. However, I think it would be very short-sighted of us to understand this phenomenon atomistically, that is to say that is not part of a larger scheme of things.

We must understand the nature of Shariah law. Shariah law is not designed to play second fiddle to any other legal system. Rather it was designed with the firm notion of supremacism in mind. It will grow and ultimately subsume whatever system with which it is co-existent.

No amount of curtailment and restraint will help this due to the absolutist nature of Shariah legal texts.

The reason for this malignance is the fact that Shariah law is developed under an imperialist system. The Islamic empire of the time was expansionist and needed its law to be supreme in order to strengthen its imperial grip. It is worth noting that these laws are usually against the letter and spirit of the Quran.

The second thing to note is that Shariah law is also against the Federal Constitution itself. The biggest example of this is the issue of freedom of religion. While this freedom is guaranteed in the Federal Constitution, it is forcibly taken away from Malay-Muslims by Shariah law.

These cases are usually processed in the courts without any violence but the issue of apostasy is a thorny one. Malays grow extremely agitated when any group is accused of leading Malay-Muslims to apostasy or even deviance from the Islamic norm. This example should tell us of how easily "moderate Islam" can manifest as extremist tendencies.

There can be only one solution to this problem – complete secularisation. We cannot enforce legal boundaries to Shariah law and expect it to stay within those boundaries anymore than we can expect cancer cells which start in the liver to stay localised and not manifest elsewhere. Both are designed to be malignant. They will spread and ultimately overtake.

The only solution is to remove Shariah courts altogether. It must be remembered that Shariah courts were conceded as a compromise to British colonialism in the past so that Malays would not lose their identity altogether.

While global civilisation has moved past these anachronistic throwbacks, we are still stuck in bodysnatching legal battles to bury some person in the Muslim cemetery. How can we ever become moderate and progressive then?

We need to also disempower religious authorities altogether and keep them, if at all, as mere functionaries. It is their job to lead religious rituals. Politics, economics, legislature are beyond their sphere of concern. Religious function must be kept separate from public life.

I understand your appeal to the prime minister for his support but I feel that his hands are tied. His laudatory speech on the progress of the "Islamic State" (which was still called as Isis at the time) shows that these extremist elements have penetrated even the PM's department.

That should concord with Jamil Khir's statement which you mentioned in your letter.

The Malays' two means of political expression, Umno and PAS have been utterly compromised. They are now playing with the fire of Islamofascism, unaware that they can soon set the nation ablaze.

I suggest that you throw your support behind NGOs which can help educate the Malays that Shariah laws are not the legal expression of Islam but rather a force which undermines Islam's very spirit.

Only through education, the Malays may stand firm against this incursion and thus set themselves back on the road to progress and development.

Thank you.

* Farouk A.Peru reads The Malaysian Insider.