It is now time to put the “Allah” controversy to a complete stop, lest it jeopardizes intercommunity and inter-religious harmony.

In 1986, the Mahathir government issued a ban on the use of the word “Allah” by non-Muslims in the country.

The issue that shouldn’t have evolved into an outright “ban” has unfortunately troubled the Malaysian society for over three decades.

Back then Tun Mahathir banned the use of the word “Allah” by non-Muslims on the pretext to preserve public order and prevent misunderstanding between Muslims and Christians.

“Allah” has been used as a generalized term for God. It is not the name of God but it means the Creator.

This term was widely used on the Arabian peninsula before the arrival of the Islamic faith. After that, Muslim Arabians, non-Muslim Arabians, Christian Arabians, Christian Indonesians and even Christians in both Malaysia and Indonesia had been using the word “Allah” in mainstream Biblical versions as the translation from the word Elohim, which according to Wikipedia means “God” in Hebrew.

The use of the word “Allah” among Malaysia’s non-Muslim communities as the alternative name for the Christian God could be traced back over 400 years ago, although no incident of disruption to “public order” has ever been reported, nor creating any “misunderstanding” among Muslims and Christians. No, nothing, until Tun M ordered the ban of the word for non-Muslims!

Tun M’s order had been in place pretty event-free until when Sarawakian Christian Jill Ireland Bill challenged the ban in 2008.

On May 11 that year, Jill flew from Indonesia to Kuala Lumpur, and her eight educational CDs and books with the word “Allah” were seized by the immigration department. She took the case to the court to challenge the ban.

July 2014, the High Court Judge overturned the home ministry’s decision to confiscate Jill’s CDs. June the following year, the Court of Appeal ruled that the home ministry had to return the confiscated CDs within one month.

After Pakatan Harapan came to power in 2018, Jill and a church in Sabah jointly wrote to the federal government seeking an out-of-court settlement. Later after PN took over the federal administration, a deputy minister was commissioned to handle this matter.

On March 10, 2021, Kuala Lumpur High Court Judge Nor Bee Ariffin ruled that non-Muslims could use the word “Allah” for religious and educational purposes. The AG’s Chambers immediately filed an appeal, but on April 18 this year, the AGC issued a notice to withdraw from its appeal on the “Allah” ruling, meaning Mahathir’s 1986 ban on the use of “Allah” by non-Muslims is now unconstitutional and invalid.

By right the “Allah” controversy should come to a rest by now, but several Malay organizations have urged the home ministry to explain to the High Court, claiming that any decision by the government must take into account the laws of respective states because some states have banned the use of “Allah” by non-Muslims and that such bans have been consented by the sultans.

Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim explained that Kuala Lumpur High Court’s verdict that Christians could use the word “Allah” was only applicable to Sarawak.

Home minister Saifuddin Nasution Ismail said on Tuesday that his ministry would study the issue and submit a more comprehensive directive on the use of “Allah,” “Baitullah,” “Kaabah” and “Solat” to reflect Malaysia’s ethnic and religious diversity, while more effectively monitoring and controlling publications violating the existing religious laws.

The minister said the home ministry was more concerned about the issue of public order, citing Article 11(5) of the Federal Constitution barring any act contrary to any general law relating to public order, public health or morality.

Religious freedom must be respected by all human beings. You can believe or not believe in any god, so long as you do not engage in unlawful acts in the name of religion.

As Saifuddin has said, everyone has the right to embrace and practice any religious faith, but they are still subjected to the restrictions and controls of relevant federal and state laws.

It is now time to put the “Allah” controversy to a complete stop, lest it jeopardizes intercommunity and inter-religious harmony.