1 Tingkat Besi Satu, 11600 Penang
Parish priest: Rev. Francis Anthony
Asst priests: Rev. Henry Louis Rajoo, Rev Fabian Dicom
2008
Penang held a forum on Election 2008 – Issues to ponder before voting on
In his opening remarks,
letter by the Bishop of Penang. (see Herald
explain the need to be aware of and to be able differentiate between the real issues
and the petty issues. Joachim said that “since the politicians usually don’t want to
speak about the real issues, we have brought to you the people who can and will speak
on these pertinent issues which should rightly help us make informed decisions as we
decide how we will cast our vote.”
The first speaker,
Cathedral “for not adopting an attitude that says what happens outside the confines
of the church walls does not concern them. Of course, that is not true. It definitely
concerns the church and the Christian community. Whether we like it or not, politics i
s pervasive and affects us all, including the church.” He went to reiterate that “the
church may want to leave politics alone but politics will not leave the church alone.”
Rama then went on to highlight many issues that affected the Church because of
political decisions, such the delayed issuance of permit to publish Herald and the
conditions imposed on it. He also paid tribute to the church for standing firm on
matters of principle and felt proud of the church’s brave stand. He then went on
to enumerate other issues such the problems faced in the construction of
on new church buildings, and in mission schools.
Rama remarked that “the intolerance of the BN to the other religions is very, very disturbing.”
He also went on point out the problems faced by other religions in constructing symbols
of their religion, such as “height of the Goddess of Mercy”, the scrapping Mazu statue
project in
He said that “we should not be led to believe that such stands are not the stand of the
BN government but only few are involved because if the leadership is silent then one
cannot come to any other conclusion.”
Rama then went on to talk about the sorry state of the security and the double
standards employed by the guardians of the law and the prevalent corruption in every
structure of our society including the judiciary – “the last bastion for justice”.
“My friends, the list of abuses, the violations of law, the denial of human rights,
squandering of the wealth is a long one. But this will suffice for today for all of
to realize that we have a government that has become very powerful, too arrogant
and uncaring. It becomes compassionate when elections are on and forgets you after that.”
Rama reiterated that “our vote is not just a piece of paper. It is more than that. I
t is paper that will elect the next government and determine your future.”
He hoped that this general election will motivate the ordinary people to vote responsibly
so that the BN will not be given another huge mandate that has made them arrogant,
unaccountable and undemocratic.
The next speaker, Associate Professor Zaharom Nain, from the Centre of Policy
Research, USM, talked about The Malaysian Media and the 12th General Elections.
Zaharom began by hoping that what he is going to say “will help you understand
more deeply the roles the media play in
and genuine choice on March 8.”
Zaharom reiterated that “democracy isn’t just about going to polls every five years or so,
but it is about the conduct and behaviour of the people we choose as our representatives
during their tenure and how we can influence them”.
He added that “it is also about what information we can get in order to decide how well
– or badly – our representatives are serving us…and the country as a whole”.
Zaharom stated that “the quality of that information depends very much on the quality
of the media system available – quality of the Malaysian media system is, at best,
questionable and, at worst, truly rotten”.
Zaharom listed the main factors for this sorry state of affairs – “the stranglehold of
the State/government through excessive legal controls” such as PPPA, OSA, ISA,
Sedition Act; and “the dictatorship of the market by where the main mainstream
media organizations in Malaysia are owned – and certainly controlled - by political
parties in the ruling coalition and their, for want of a better word, ‘affiliates’.”
Zahrom went on to reiterate “that during election time, we see a media industry that
really shows how muzzled, sycophantic and truly pathetic it can be.”
He then traced some of the instances of bad or negative reporting like ignoring the
opposition completely or highlighting their faults.
Zaharom remarked that “if they believe in genuine democracy they really should
critically assess the issues at stake. But it is quite unlikely that they will.”
“There is some hope in the New and Alternative Media such as email, SMS and
established news portals and blogs: But the potential reach is mainly to the young and urban.
In concluding remarks, Zaharom hoped that “whichever side wins this elections there
is no 2/3 majority for any side” and that “as citizens we need to increase our vigilance of the media.”
“We need to demand that public-funded media organizations such as RTM be
accountable to us, and not just to the interests of political parties.”
The last speaker of the night was Ms Lim Kah Cheng, a lawyer and a past president
of the Women’s Centre for Change (WCC) who began by “advertising” the role of the
WCC and then went on to state the need for change and rectifying gender discriminatory
laws to protect women in today’s society.
She stated that parliament is the lawmaker and that the parliament is chosen by us.
She remarked that some of MPs do not deserve to be there e.g. the “sexist” MPs and
BN’s women MPs. Ms Lim hoped that we will be careful when exercising our right when we go the polls.
The forum ended with a very lively question and answer session.
By Gregory Warrier
20th January: PHDC organized a forum: Is Malaysia an Islamic State?
PENANG: The Catholic community in Penang clearly care, are concerned and want
to be better informed about happenings that ultimately affect them as rakyat Katolik
of the Holy Spirit (CHS) for a forum on “Islamisation of Malaysia.” The event
was organised by the CHS Parish Human Development Committee (PHDC).
The speakers: Dr Azmi Sharom – Associate Professor, Law Faculty, Universiti
Malaya and Star columnist (Brave New World), Bernard Baldev Bhar – Chairman,
Catholic Lawyers, Penang Diocese, and Rev Fr Francis Anthony – former Rector of
College General, presently, parish priest of the Cathedral of the Holy Spirit.
The forum was moderated by Gregory R. Warrier, Chairman of the CHS
Parish Pastoral Council. ABE Soter Fernandez, Bishop Antony Selvanayagam,
and Fr Edwin Paul, Rector of College General, were among the nine hundred present.
As a lead into the forum, Joachim Xavier, of the PHDC, noted that an important
role of the PHDC was to educate the parish about real life issues that affect them.
When properly informed, Catholics will be able to discuss these issues wisely
and act justly vis-à-vis their fundamental rights and status as practising
Catholics in
matched in pictures with a video presentation titled “
Dr Azmi Sharom began with the legal definitions of an Islamic state, and on the
need to retain Common Law versus Syariah Law. He opened with a bang:
“Is
“Is it an Islamic State? No!” The audience was flushed with relief. The
learned and eloquent professor hastened to explain that being an “Islamic country”
means having a majority Muslim population, which appropriately describes
– its democracy and laws are derived from the Holy Qur’an and the Hadith,”
which is surely an inapt description of Malaysian governance. The confusion
arose, he said, because Article 3 of the Constitution states that Islam is the religion
of the Federation. This has led to the fallacious reasoning that therefore the
Constitution – the foundation of all our laws and system of governance
– is an Islamic one. “This is wrong,” announced Dr Azmi, in a clear bid to rectify
the misconception.
The confusion is compounded by the fact that “The Constitution does not
say whether it is secular; neither does it say it is Islamic,” said he. But the
traveux preparatoire (preparatory documents) of the Constitution, namely
the Reid Report, states very clearly that even though Article 3 exists, it does
not mean in any way that the Constitution is not a secular one. According
to Dr Azmi, it is a Mahathir-caused confusion arising out of his unilateral
declaration that
his deputy, have simply continued to perpetuate this fallacy. Through
this constant repetition they hope that it will indeed become the “truth” and
what’s more, a ploy to outwit PAS in the latter’s bid for an Islamic State, because
then the government can simply say, hey, but, we’re already an Islamic State!
“In their short term quest for political mileage the current leaders have lost
all sense of moral direction to tell the truth,” said a grieved Dr Azmi.
The current call for Syariah law to replace Common Law is equally flawed.
Among reasons offered, Dr Azmi countered it best by reasoning how wrong
it is to force a source of law that is of divine origin, on people who do not
believe in that divine source. It is plain that a country that has been |
founded as a democracy cannot be allowed to slip into a theocracy. “The
Constitution is a secular document and it is the supreme law of the land
– not the Bible, not the Qur’an, not the Torah, not the Vedas!” Dr Azmi
declared. Furthermore, he cautioned that a Constitution of divine origins
cannot easily be debated, amended, changed or set aside, unlike a secular
democracy which allows people to have a say in the manner they are
governed, including the laws that govern them. Regarding the “Allah”
controversy, he is appalled at the government’s desperate attempt to
mollycoddle the Muslim mind, and control “Islamic thought.”
Bernard Baldev Bhar in turn enlightened the people on the legal implications of
converting to Islam. He put it plainly, “You can go in, but you cannot come out!”
He supported this with a comprehensive listing of Articles and actual cases in
attendance to drive home the serious implications. He clearly scored a point
when he mentioned that even Shah Rukh Khan (a superstar of Bollywood fame)
was arrested for sleeping with his non-Muslim wife, on Malaysian soil! Later,
the audience expanded this list of inappropriate arrests by paranoid RELA officers
who thought nothing of making a Malaysian mockery of the institution of marriage.
Bernard also fielded a large number of questions of a legalistic nature during the Q & A segment.
The cool and calm Fr FA set the tone for his take on “How Catholics can respond
to the issues raised, in a calm and fair manner.” He began by tracing and placing
the Church in the heart of society; a living and responding Church that respects
the truth and faith of others, and illustrated this with “If you love me, follow me”.
He explained, “In addressing the whole world, the Church upholds the moral values
of justice, peace and freedom.” When these values go missing in the world, the
Church earnestly seeks to restore them for the good of the individual and society.
Since individuals add up to form society, ultimately, the society reflects the individuals.
He cautioned that if a governing body (be that of a church) does not help or encourage
an individual express to himself, grow, and develop as he rightly should, then that
governing body is at fault. He regretted that in an age of such technological advancement,
“People are denied the whole truth, and given only selective information. Information
helps form a person. We want the truth, for the good of the individual and society.”
He also called for a stop in repeating fallacious statements with the misplaced intention
to turn them into “gospel truth.”
Referring to the Beatitudes and the Good Samaritan episode, Fr FA exemplified
how the Church must reach out when there is a need. Enumerating the similarities
between Christianity and Islam, he showcased the Catholic Church’s stance towards
Islam. He also reminded people of the Pope’s exhortation to be informed about
the faith of others for peaceful co-existence. Finally, the prayerful priest reminded
his flock that prayers must always underlie all our acts and efforts because we are
the Church. The forum concluded with an interesting Q & A session.
(Note: A CD recording of the forum is available. For orders & further information
call Emily at 012 2728893).
- By Lucille Dass
CHS PHDC initiated Migrant Ministry in the parish
The Migrant Ministry of the CHS has made history by successfully organising the
very first migrant event in the parish – the New Year Party that was attended by
about 50 migrant workers from
workers had a great time singing, playing games and interacting with each other.
They were later treated to a sumptuous dinner that was sponsored by well wishers
and POHD.
It was truly a joy to see that this parish has finally reached out to the
migrants who are predominantly marginalised in our country.
The response from Catholics in the parish who have domestic workers
at home was however very poor. Perhaps there are fears that sending
their maids to the event may cause problems to them.
Well, it is hoped that in time, Catholic employers would see the benefits
of giving their maids some freedom to interact and enjoy themselves.
This event may be the Migrant Ministry's first event but it certainly
achieved their aim to create an environment of love and fun for migrants – A Home Away from Home!
2007
Sept 29th & 30th 2007: Introduction to the Migrant Ministry
Venue: Cathedral of the Holy Spirit
Sept 1st 2007: Exhibition on Introduction to the Migrant Ministry
Venue: Cathedral of the Holy Spirit Hall
2nd March: Election 2008 - Issues to ponder before Voting