Counter PAS’ false narrative on Taliban, expert urges Islamic bodies and scholars

Counter PAS’ false narrative on Taliban, expert urges Islamic bodies and scholars




THE religious departments and Islamic scholars must step in to counter the narratives peddled by PAS on Taliban’s rise in Afghanistan, said an expert.

“Both sides of the political side are guilty of pandering to extreme elements within their fold, particularly PAS.

“This must be stopped immediately. Our Islamic bodies and independent religious scholars must intervene to counter the narratives peddled by unscrupulous politicians.


“Why leave everything for the police to handle by themselves?” Arunachala Research & Consultancy Sdn Bhd principal consultant R Paneir Selvam queried when contacted by FocusM.

On April 6, Bukit Aman’s counter-terrorism chief Normah Ishak claimed that PAS was banking on Taliban’s rise in Afghanistan to bolster its Islamic image.


Speaking in a webinar titled “Next Generation Afghan Alumni? Assessment from Southeast Asia”, Normah said PAS made the move when praising the Taliban after the US troops withdrew from the country in August last year.

She also cited PAS International Affairs and External Relations committee chairman Muhammad Khalil Abdul Hadi’s congratulatory message on Aug 18 to prove her point.

“They are creating narratives to the party’s advantage, forming opinions and perceptions among Muslims in Malaysia, so that Muslims in Malaysia (think) ‘Taliban is okay now. They will be fine without armed support’.

“The recognition by an Islamic party for the Taliban’s struggle augurs well with fans of terrorism in Malaysia,” Free Malaysia Today reported her as saying.

The senior police officer’s statement sent shockwaves in PAS, with the latter’s spiritual adviser Hashim Jasin dismissing it.

“Yes, we praised the Taliban for fighting against the ‘anti-Islam’ America. However, that doesn’t mean we follow everything the Taliban does as Malaysia is a democracy,” he was reported as saying.

PAS information chief Khairul Nizam Khiruddin also dismissed Maznah’s views and said the party only supported the Taliban as they are administering Afghanistan.

Lauding Maznah for being upfront, Paneir Selvam it was peculiar that PAS, despite being part of the Government, was going all out to support the Taliban while Putrajaya has yet to officially recognise its legitimacy.

He added that despite PAS assertions that the Taliban now has “changed”, its conduct in recent months have proven to be otherwise.

“Despite pledging to support human rights, the Taliban administration have now started stopping high-school girls from going back to school.

“And they have also ruled that only bearded men can work in the country’s public sector. Can PAS explain their support for Taliban to us now?” Paneir Selvam asked.

Extreme views being “normalised”

Elaborating on the matter, the academic said that the problem in Malaysia now was extreme views are not being curtailed by the authorities, allowing them to become mainstream to everyone’s detriment.

He added that certain politicians are “encouraging hate preachers to spread their false ideology” without considering the fact that it could turn their symphathisers to become terrorists.

“By not curtailing them, we are actually giving them a base to recruit more followers. This will allow extremists to peddle their extreme views which can affect multi-racial Malaysia.

“This is why I support preventive laws like Security Offences (Special Measures) Act 2012 (Sosma). The authorities should step in and never allow dubious politicians to divide us,” Paneir Selvam noted.

Citing Pakistan and Bangladesh as examples, he reminded Malaysians on how the once-peaceful nations are now in a state of deterioration as their authorities failed to curb extremists from becoming mainstream leaders.

“In Pakistan, mosques visited by Shiites are bombed and in Bangladesh, extremists even kill Muslims who hold differing views from them. Is that what we want for Malaysia?” Paneir Selvam queried.

He remarked: “The Prime Minister should come out and condemn the extremists within our society. Never allow halfwit politicians to divide us.” – April 9, 2022