THE accusation that Christians have been incited to “go to war” by so-called seditious messages must be backed with evidence, Amanah vice-president Dr Mujahid Yusof Rawa said today.

On Sunday, a group of Muslim non-governmental organisations lodged a police report alleging that a 2014 Christian video contained messages that incited Christians to “prepare for the war”.

“All these accusations must be substantiated with solid evidence. Without solid proof, they are just out to provoke and threaten the harmony of peaceful co-existence,” the Parit Buntar MP said.

Dr Mujahid, who is known to engage with churches and Christians since his days in PAS to promote better interfaith relations, said such claims of certain Muslim groups against Christians were not new.

“They had been harping on these issues for many years, but without (providing) proof. I suggest these people are spreading extremism doctrine and must be stopped. 

“On the same note, if they can present proof, then action must be taken on the basis of national security.”

The seven-minute video titled “Message to the Malaysian Church 2014”, which has since been removed from YouTube following the police report, was said to contain “seditious” elements.

In the police report signed by Mohd Hafiz Kassim in Bayan Baru, Penang, the complainant said the message was provocation to wage war on Malaysia. He said he uspected the video to be the work of “extreme Christian evangelists” out to incite followers of the faith to start a war to invade and take over the country.

Hafiz also complained about a post in April last year entitled “Rise and Speak – Pastor Afeef Halasah from Jordan” on the Christianity Malaysia website.

He did not appreciate the foreign preacher making remarks like “invade this nation with the Kingdom of God”, claiming that it sounded like a threat against national security.

His police report also zoomed in on DAP’s Selangor speaker Hannah Yeoh and vice-president Ariffin Omar over their previous remarks on Christianity.

Asked to comment on the police report and the claims of the Muslim NGOs that Islam was under threat, Penang religious affairs exco Abdul Malik Abul Kassim said Islam was a strong religion.

He said the NGOs were using “old recycled issues and materials”.

“Muslims in Malaysia are well supported by so many agencies, laws, and most importantly, ongoing education in building our resilience and developing our knowledge in Islam, especially in Penang.

“Islam is a strong religion based not only on belief, but also on reasoning and science,” he told The Malaysian Insight.

Christians For Peace and Harmony in Malaysia president Reverend Wong Kim Kong noted that Malaysia was “very sensitive” in the multiracial and multi-religious context.

He said there should be more religious acceptance when it came to religious practices.

However, to preserve peaceful and harmonious co-existence, people should also avoid quoting foreign views with regard to religious practices in the country.

“We should not allow foreign views to become our concern. We should look at our Malaysian context, at how we relate to one another,” he said. – September 26, 2017.