Who will stop the rogue religious fanatics?

Who will stop the rogue religious fanatics?

Mariam Mokhtar


COMMENT | To say that the teacher, who allegedly tried to convert a student to improve his chances of becoming a national footballer is a one-off incident is not strictly true.

There have been several incidents in the past.

If you've heard of “Project Cinta”, the dakwah movement of the 1980s, or the disparate treatment of the Orang Asli, then you will know about the underhand tactics of these forced conversions.

Project Cinta is basically the "love-them-and-leave-them" project. It allegedly occurs mainly in Sabah and Sarawak.

Coerced conversions were mostly involuntary, but some opportunist non-Malays did weigh their options.

Conversions enabled unfettered access to various opportunities, funding and powerful politicians. Conversions opened doors to elite social circles.

The converts would enjoy a meteoric rise up the greasy social and professional ladder, unlike their peers who refused to compromise their principles.

These “forced” conversions are not isolated cases. Are some government departments guilty of institutionalised conversions? Are conversions part of the Biro Tata Negara (BTN)?

Who will be converted? It seems like there are five main target groups; schoolchildren, young women, the Orang Asli, single mothers and elderly parents - according to my sources.

The next question is "why". Why dismiss Article 11 of the Federal Constitution? Why convert non-Muslims? The answer is not so straightforward.

Some believe God will grant them rewards (pahala). Others want to curry favour with their superiors. A few do it for promotion and career progression. Many think that they can be fast-tracked to heaven by converting non-Malays.

The easiest target is schoolchildren. Children, especially those in boarding schools, like the Orang Asli children and the indigenous population of East Malaysia make perfect targets. They are very vulnerable without the protection of their parents.

Christian parents who waved goodbye to their child at the start of the academic year, are horrified to receive a tudung-clad daughter, at the end of term.

The child will bear an Islamic name and bring an identity card with “Islam” written under “religion”.

It's not just the dress code, the dietary requirements or the new prayer routine that upsets parents. It is the insidious nature of the conversion.

The principal will have failed in his duty of care towards the child. Sadly, the parent's trust in the school is rewarded with this unimaginable betrayal.

The teenager whose parents lodged a police report yesterday, alleged that his teacher had told him that his chances to become a national footballer would improve if he were to embrace Islam.

The teacher took advantage of the boy's passion for football and gave him false hope. Did he impress upon him that success is also dependent on his dedication, commitment, determination, discipline, hard work and personal sacrifice?

Tragedy struck other teenagers in the past. In 2015, a 14-year-old from Port Dickson, G Thiyaggurudeen, attempted suicide by drinking coffee laced with paraquat.

After Thiyaggurudeen's father divorced his Indonesian Muslim mother, both father and son applied to be apostates, but only the father's application was successful.

When his father banned him from attending the school's Islamic classes, Thiyaggurudeen's teachers urged him to lodge a police report against his father. They even forced him to drink “air penawar” (holy water), before he endured a traumatic indoctrination by religious missionaries.

Young non-Malay/Muslim girls are considered ripe for conversion. The details of “Project Cinta” are sketchy and secret, presumably because it is highly controversial.

As for Project Cinta, it involves impressionable young women fall in love with Malay/Muslim men. Some become pregnant or become engaged, before they marry and start a family.

Soon after, the man abandons them. The woman will find it impossible to revert to her former religion and anyone who marries her will have to convert.

Single mothers victimised

The non-Muslim single mother is often the victim of converts. The former husbands of Indira Gandhi and Loh Siew Hong were Hindus. They converted to Islam and kidnapped their children, despite the High Court granting the single mothers custody. These women and their children experience a living hell.

Were the men promised an easier life, with access to business loans for small enterprises, or housing applications upon conversion? What are the real reasons for conversion? Did they finally see the Islamic light?

Not all victims are young. Elderly and sick non-Malays have allegedly been converted on their deathbeds by their own children over inheritance issues.

Indira Gandhi


The Muslim convert will inherit the property of the parent he helped to convert. All that is required is the parent's thumbprint or signature on the conversion papers. Bitter family feuds originate from deathbed conversions.

The final easy target is the Orang Asli. Occupying government-built brick-and-mortar homes are not without conditions. It is alleged that the electrical supply and piped water connection will only become available after conversion.

In fact, Orang Asli Development Department (Jakoa) director-general Juli Edo himself had admonished the Kelantan government in the past for its plan to convert the Orang Asli people in the state to Islam.

Loh Siew Hong

Quote: "They converted to Islam and kidnapped their children, despite the High Court granting the single mothers custody. These women and their children experience a living hell"

Even now, MaIP (Perlis) is interfering with/intruding into Loh Siew Hong's children's lives

In the 1970s and 1980s, East Malaysian leaders were claimed to have used helicopters to reach the longhouses deep in the interior. NGOs who worked closely with the indigenous communities alleged that the help provided was a front for dakwah activities.

The conversion issue has existed for decades, but if the victims are reluctant to come forward, these coerced conversions remain as mere allegations. That is why the teenager who lodged the police report yesterday should be praised.

It was courageous of him and his parents to expose these bigots, but by keeping quiet, more damage will be done. Their exposé will save others from a humiliating ordeal and help to overhaul the teaching fraternity and sports bodies.

The teenager realises that he and his family will be targeted, not just at school, but also in the community.

Another teenager, Ain Husniza Saiful Nizam, reported her teacher for making jokes about rape. Everyone, including the minister and police, dragged their feet over this scandal. Ain Husniza has not received justice. In fact, the teacher sued her for it.

We may not know the teenager, but the least we can do for this footballing teenager is to offer our moral support, share his story and continue to pressure the authorities to take action.

This teenager's case covers a wide spectrum of agencies. The school, the Education Department and the Education, Sports, and Law Ministries.

One final question. How will the government stop these religious fanatics? Doing nothing is not an option.

MARIAM MOKHTAR is a defender of the truth, the admiral-general of the Green Bean Army, and president of the Perak Liberation Organisation (PLO). Blog, Twitter.