Berikut adalah kandungan Memorandum tersebut:
MEMORANDUM
BERHUBUNG PENINGKATAN KEJADIAN YANG MENYUBURKAN KETEGANGAN AGAMA DALAM MASYARAKAT.
KEJADIAN SERANGAN PROVOKASI TERHADAP RUMAH IBADAT DI MALAYSIA ADALAH PENCABULAN HAK ASASI YANG SERIUS!
MENYERU SUHAKAM MENGAMBIL TINDAKAN SEGERA UNTUK MENANGANI ISU TERSEBUT!
Keputusan mahkamah berkenaan penggunaan kalimah Allah oleh suratkhabar Herald Tribune telah mencetuskan pelbagai reaksi dari masyarakat. Kesan yang paling membimbangkan rentetan daripada keputusan mahkamah tersebut adalah berlakunya beberapa kejadian yang tidak diingini yang melibatkan rumah-rumah ibadat di Malaysia. Tindakan ini disyaki dilakukan oleh ejen-ejen provokator dengan tujuan menggugat keamanan serta keharmonian rakyat Malaysia. Senarai kejadian yang berlaku adalah seperti yang berikut:
- Gereja Metro Tabernacle (Assemblies of God) di Desa Melawati – molotov cocktail merosakkan sebahagian daripada gereja. (8 Jan)
- Gereja Assumption (Catholic) di Jalan Templar – molotov cocktail dicampak ke perkarangan gereja dan gagal meletup. (8 Jan)
- Life Chapel (evangelical Brethren) di Section 17, PJ – molotov cocktail merosakkan bahagian anjung gereja. (8 Jan)
- Gereja Good Shepherd (Lutheran) di PJ – bom api nyaris terkena tingkap, dan membakar tingkap. (8 Jan)
- Surau di Taman Menara Maju in Jalan Kampung Jawa, Klang – pintu berkecai. (laporan polis dibuat pada 9 Jan)
- Gereja All Saints (Anglican) di Taiping –Dua molotov cocktails membakar tangga menghala ke pintu masuk dan anjung tepi. (9 Jan)
- Sekolah Convent (Catholic) di Taiping – molotov cocktail, pecah masuk rumah pengawal keselamatan. (9 Jan)
- Gereja Baptist Melaka (Baptist) di Durian Daun – dikotori oleh cat hitam. (9 Jan)
- Gereja Good Shepherd (Anglican) di Lutong, Miri – batu dibaling dan menyebabkan kaca tingkap berkecai. (9 Jan)
- Gereja Sidang Injil Borneo (Borneo Evangelical Mission) in Seremban – pintu hadapan terbakar. (10 Jan)
- Gurdwara Sahib (Sikh) di Sentul – batu dibaling, cermin di pintu masuk retak dan dinding dipecahkan. (12 Jan)
- Gereja St Elizabeth (Katolik) di Kota Kecil, Johor – cat merah dibaling, mengotorkan pagar utama, dinding dan patung. (14 Jan)
- Gereja Grace Global Prayer di Rasah, Seremban – dua tingkap kasa dijumpai pecah. (15 Jan)
- Masjid di Kota Samarahan, Sarawak – serpihan kaca dijumpai di dinding luar. (16 Jan)
- Surau Sirratulrahim di Kampung Sabak Awor, Muar – api memusnahkan langsir, tingkap pecah. (21 Jan)
- Surau di Parit Beting, Muar – api memusnahkan bahagian solat untuk wanita. (21 Jan)
Kejadian terbaru yang berlaku di Masjid Jumhuriyah di Taman Dato’ Haron dan Masjid Al Imam At Tirmizi di Taman Seri Sentosa di mana dua kepala babi hutan telah ditemui berdekatan dengan pagar premis tersebut menunjukkan pihak yang bertanggungjawab masih bebas dan boleh meneruskan serangan provokasi terhadap masyarakat pada masa hadapan. Jikalau serangan mencetus provokasi sebegini tidak ditangani, adalah dibimbangi ianya akan menyebabkan kejadian yang jauh lebih serius termasuklah kehilangan jiwa mana-mana rakyat jelata.
Menyedari bahawa ancaman sebegini akan mendatangkan masalah kepada masyarakat demokratik kita yang rapuh, serta menyedari kesannya yang menganggu gugat dan mencabul hak asasi rakyat Malaysia, memorandum ini dihantar atas dasar-dasar yang berikut:
- Serangan terhadap rumah ibadat merupakan satu bentuk pencabulan hak asasi manusia ke atas rakyat Malaysia kerana ianya menghalang rakyat dari mengamalkan kepercayaan masing-masing secara bebas, tanpa sebarang ancaman dari ejen provokator yang berkepentingan peribadi. Kebebasan beragama tidak hanya tertumpu pada kebebasan untuk menganuti dan mengamalkan kepercayaan masing-masing malahan ia merangkumi jaminan bahawa tempat ibadat turut dihormati dan dilindungi.
- Walaupun kita menghormati dan mengiktiraf kebebasan bersuara rakyat Malaysia, serangan provokasi yang berlaku adalah satu bentuk penyalahgunaan kebebasan bersuara yang boleh mengorbankan hak orang lain. Ini dilarang sama sekali oleh Perkara 29 Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) 1948 iaitu:
“…In the exercise of his rights and freedoms, everyone shall be subject only to such limitations as are determined by law solely for the purpose of securing due recognition and respect for the rights and freedoms of others and of meeting the just requirements of morality, public order and the general welfare in a democratic society.”
- Penggunaan keganasan dengan tidak menghormati agama atau kepercayaan rakyat adalah antitesis kepada prinsip hak asasi manusia yang menentang unsur-unsur yang tidak toleran seperti perkauman dan komunalisme. Serangan provokasi yang berlaku akan mengancam dan melemahkan institusi demokratik negara dan meracuni budaya hormat kepada hak asasi manusia.
Justeru, kami menyeru SUHAKAM agar memandang serius perkara ini memandangkan SUHAKAM diberi mandat untuk menangani isu hak asasi manusia di Malaysia menerusi Seksyen 4(i) Akta SUHAKAM 1999. Adalah mengecewakan kerana SUHAKAM tidak lantang dan ke hadapan dalam menangani isu serangan terhadap toleransi keagamaan, komunalisme dan perkauman dan menganggap ianya sebagai satu bentuk isu hak asasi manusia yang penting kepada rakyat Malaysia.
Keputusan International Coordinating Committee untuk mengekalkan gred “A” SUHAKAM harus meningkatkan komitmen SUHAKAM untuk menangani pencabulan hak asasi yang serius di Malaysia dan ini termasuklah isu berkaitan perkauman dan keagamaan. Atas dasar inilah kami mengusulkan agar SUHAKAM mengambil tindakan yang berikut :
1. SUHAKAM wajar mengadakan satu Siasatan Awam ke atas serangan provokasi terhadap tempat ibadat bagi menyiasat punca masalah dan mencari penyelesaian serta mekanisme untuk mengatasi masalah ini dari sudut hak asasi manusia.
2. SUHAKAM wajar menyeru kerajaan agar memperkenalkan suatu undang-undang yang dapat mengekang sebarang cubaan untuk membuat provokasi berbentuk perkauman dan keagamaan. Walau bagaimanapun, berdasarkan pemerhatian kami mengenai penggunaan undang-undang seperti ISA dan Ordinan Darurat oleh kerajaan, yang menghalalkan tangkapan sewenang-wenangnya serta penahanan tanpa bicara, adalah disyorkan agar undang-undang tersebut diselaraskan dengan prinsip keadilan asasi dan kedaulatan undang-undang.
3. SUHAKAM, bersama-sama dengan agensi penguatkuasaan lain di Negara ini haru memantau cubaan di peringkat akar umbi untuk menyebarkan semangat perkauman dan ketiadaan toleransi agama oleh pihak yang tidak bertanggungjawab, bagi memelihara keharmonian antara kaum dan agama dalam masyarakat. Selain itu, penilaian impak harus dijalankan oleh SUHAKAM bagi menilai sejauhmana isu ini menggugat hak asasi, kesejahteraan masyarakat serta integriti dan perpaduan nasional.
4. SUHAKAM seharusnya menggesa kerajaan untuk meratifikasi International Covenant on Civil Political Rights (ICCPR), International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR), Convention on Elimination of Racial Discrimination (CERD) dan memenuhi obligasi serta komitmennya kepada standard hak asasi manusia antarabangsa. Kejadian yang berlaku harus menjadi ingatan kepada SUHAKAM dan kerajaan tentang betapa perlunya kerajaan menghormati hak asasi manusia sebagai satu langkah untuk memulihkan keyakinan awam bahawa mereka tidak akan diancam dan dimangsai oleh pencetus kekecohan pada masa hadapan.
Kami berpendapat tindakan SUHAKAM berdiam diri dalam isu hak asasi yang berkaitan dengan masalah berbentuk keagamaan dan perkauman adalah tidak wajar. Adalah amat memalukan bilamana Suruhanjaya Hak Asasi Manusia di negara lain lebih kehadapan dalam menangani isu keganasan dan diskriminasi yang berlaku kerana tiadanya toleransi agama dan kaum. Kami benar-benar percaya masanya telah tiba untuk SUHAKAM mengotakan apa yang dikata dan memainkan peranannya dengan berkesan. Kejadian yang berlaku haruslah menjadi pemangkin untuk SUHAKAM turun ke akar umbi bagi mengatasi masalah ini dari sudut pandangan hak asasi manusia.
MEMORANDUM DIKEMUKAKAN OLEH:
YB NURUL IZZAH ANWAR
YB USTAZ MUJAHID YUSUF RAWA
YB TIAN CHUA
YB JANICE LEE
YB NIK NAZMI NIK AHMAD
YB HANNAH YEOH
YB AMIRUDDIN SHAARI
Versi Bahasa Inggeris
MEMORANDUM
ON THE RISE OF INCIDENTS THAT INSTIGATE RELIGIOUS TENSION IN THE COMMUNITY.
THE SERIES OF ATTACK AND PROVOCATION ON WORSHIP AND RELIGIOUS SITES IN MALAYSIA IS A SERIOUS HUMAN RIGHTS VIOLATION!
CALLING THE HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSION OF MALAYSIA (SUHAKAM) TO IMMEDIATELY ADDRESS THE ISSUE
The court’s decision on the use of the term “Allah” by Herald Tribune has sparked diverse responses from various sectors of the society. The most worrying impact of the court decision is that it has led to a series of unwarranted incidents affecting worship and religious sites in Malaysia. It is suspected that the incidents were spearheaded by agent provocateurs with the aim of disrupting the peaceful co-existence and harmony of Malaysians. The incidents mentioned are as follows:
- Metro Tabernacle Church (Assemblies of God) in Desa Melawati – molotov cocktail damages administrative wing (8 Jan)
- Assumption Church (Catholic) in Jalan Templar – molotov cocktail hurled on pavement in front of church fails to explode (8 Jan)
- Life Chapel (evangelical Brethren) in Section 17, PJ – molotov cocktail slightly damages porch (8 Jan)
- Good Shepherd Church (Lutheran) in PJ old town – firebomb misses window, scorches outer wall, minimal damage (8 Jan)
- Surau in Taman Menara Maju in Jalan Kampung Jawa, Klang – sliding door shattered (police report lodged on 9 January)
- All Saints’ Church (Anglican) in Taiping – two molotov cocktails scorch stair case leading to main entrance and side porch (9 Jan)
- Convent school (Catholic) in Taiping – molotov cocktail, probably meant for St Louis’ Church (Catholic) next door, breaks guard-house window (9 Jan)
- Malacca Baptist Church (Baptist) in Durian Daun – smeared with black paint (9 Jan)
- Good Shepherd Church (Anglican) in Lutong, Miri – stones shatter window panes (9 Jan)
- Sidang Injil Borneo Church (Borneo Evangelical Mission) in Seremban – front doors scorched (10 Jan)
- Gurdwara Sahib (Sikh) in Sentul – stones flung, mirror at entrance cracked and wall chipped (12 Jan)
- St Elizabeth’s Church (Catholic) in Kota Kecil, Johor – packets of red paint hurled, splattering the main gate, the grounds inside, a wall and a statue (14 Jan)
- Grace Global Prayer Church in Rasah, Seremban – two window panes found broken (15 Jan)
- Mosque in Kota Samarahan, Sarawak – broken glass found near outside wall (16 Jan)
- Sirratulrahim Surau in Kampung Sabak Awor, Muar – fire damages curtain, window shattered (21 Jan)
- Surau in Parit Beting, Muar – fire damages the women’s prayer section, carpeting and a door (21 Jan)
The latest incidents that took place at the Jumhuriyah Mosque in Taman Dato’ Haron and Al Imam At Tirmizi Mosque in Taman Seri Sentosa, Lembah Pantai, where two wild-boar heads were found near a gate to the premises demonstrated the possibility that the culprit behind previous attacks are still free to continue to attack and provoke society with similar stunts in future. It is feared that these series of attacks and provocation, if left unchecked, will serve as fertile ground for further violence within the community of Malaysians.
Realizing the threat that this problem poses to our fragile democratic society, and understanding that Malaysian human rights are at stake and will be open to abuse, we submit this memorandum based on the following grounds:
- The series of attack on the religious and worship sites is a violation to the community’s human right to exercise their religion in peace without unwanted interference and threat from agent provocateurs that are motivated by personal interest and gains. Freedom of religion does not only refer to freedom to adopt or profess a religion of one’s choice but also the assurance that their places of worship are respected.
- Although we respect and uphold a person’s freedom of expression and opinion, the series of attack and provocation reflects malicious and excessive exercise of one’s freedom of expression at the expense of the rights of others. This is expressly condemned by Article 29 (2) of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) 1948 where it states the following:
“…In the exercise of his rights and freedoms, everyone shall be subject only to such limitations as are determined by law solely for the purpose of securing due recognition and respect for the rights and freedoms of others and of meeting the just requirements of morality, public order and the general welfare in a democratic society.”
- The use of violence and show of disrespect towards another person’s religion or faith is the antithesis to human rights principles that condemns communalism, racism and intolerance. A further continuance of the series of provocation and attacks will threaten and negatively affect Malaysia’s democracy and culture of respecting human rights.
Therefore, we urge SUHAKAM to seriously look into the matter as the Commission is mandated to take charge and address human rights issues in the country
vide Section 4(i) of the Human Rights Commission Act 1999. It is saddening that SUHAKAM has not been vocal and upfront in addressing the issues of communalism, racism and religious intolerance as human rights issues that is of urgent concern to Malaysians. The decision of the International Coordinating Committee to retain the “A” status of the Commission should be reflected by the Commission’s actual commitment to address serious human rights violations in the country and this includes religious and racial issues. It is based on these grounds that we propose SUHAKAM take up the following actions in addressing the series of provocation against places of worship in the country:
1. SUHAKAM should conduct a National Inquiry into the series of provocation and attacks on places of worship and religious sites with the aim of investigating the root cause to the problem and to determine the appropriate rights-based solution or mechanism to address this issue.
2. SUHAKAM should engage the government and call for the enactment and passing of an anti-racial and religious intolerance law that will curb any attempts at instigating racial and religious hatred in the country. However, learning from experience, with the use of draconian laws such as ISA and Emergency Ordinance for arbitrary arrests and indefinite detention by the government, it is recommended that such law must be in accordance with principles of natural justice and rule of law.
3. SUHAKAM, together with other enforcement agencies in the country should observe and monitor growing attempts at the grassroots level that propagate racism and religious intolerance in order to curb any further potential provocations by irresponsible members of the society and also to preserve racial and religious harmony within the community. In addition to that, a proper impact assessment must be done by SUHAKAM to assess how the issue has threatened the community’s rights and wellbeing and negatively affected national unity and integrity.
4. SUHAKAM should continue to urge the government to ratify the International Covenant on Civil Political Rights (ICCPR), International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR), Convention on Elimination of Racial Discrimination (CERD) and to fulfill its obligations and commitment to other international human rights standards. The incidents that took place should be a reminder to the Commission and the governments on the need for the State to abide by human rights principles as a way to restore the public’s confidence that they will not be victimized and threatened by the perpetrators of chaos in the future.
We have observed that SUHAKAM has been silent on human rights issues that are intertwined with religious and racial concerns. This is a shame as the Human Rights Commission in other parts of the world have been very progressive in addressing issues of violence and discrimination that are motivated by racism and religious intolerance. We truly believe that the time has come for SUHAKAM to walk the talk and play its role effectively. The incidents that have happened should be a catalyst for SUHAKAM to go down to the grassroots and address the problem from a human rights viewpoint.
MEMORANDUM SUBMITTED BY:
YB NURUL IZZAH ANWAR
YB USTAZ MUJAHID YUSUF RAWA
YB TIAN CHUA
YB JANICE LEE
YB NIK NAZMI NIK AHMAD
YB HANNAH YEOH
YB AMIRUDDIN SHAARI
YB LIM LIP ENG
