Ministry mulling action against mission school after prayer complaint

Updated 4 years ago · Published on 29 Sep 2019 5:11PM · 4 Comments

Members of a Malay pressure group leaving the police station yesterday after filing a report about an awards ceremony at a missionary school in George Town. – Facebook pic, September 229, 2019.

THE Education Ministry is mulling disciplinary action against a Penang mission school for reciting Christian prayers at a public event, said Dr Amin Senin.

The education director-general said another school was also being hauled up for not following the curriculum set by the ministry.

“The ministry is also considering disciplinary action against the schools’ administrators,” said Amin in a statement today.

Amin said SK Methodist had flouted rules set out in 2016’s circular on protocols while the unnamed school in Perak had contravened education rules pertaining to the curriculum.

He said the Education Act 1996 had fixed that the Art subject should be taught in the national language.

Amin also reminded other schools to follow the Education Act and adhere to the government’s circulars.

“Non-compliance could result in disciplinary action agains the schools’ administrators,” said Amin.

A police report was lodged yesterday by a Muslim group alleging the missionary school in Penang of trying to proselytise to Muslims by reciting a Christian prayer during an event at the school.

The Malaysian Insight reported on Friday that a political activist had lodged a police report against the school’s administration over the incident, which took place during an awards ceremony at 8.30am. The report was lodged at 11.30am.

The Malaysian Insight understands that the Northeast District Education Department had a meeting with the headmaster, school administration and the school’s board about the issue.

The department is also expected to have a meeting with the Malay pressure group that raised the issue.

According to Article 11(4) of the federal constitution, federal or state laws may be enacted to control or restrict the propagation of any religious doctrine or belief to Muslims.
The Federal Territory, Penang, Sabah and Sarawak are the four states that have yet to enact these laws. 

In the case of the unnamed Perak school, it ran foul of the ministry circular after it had conducted a training session for art teachers in Mandarin when art lessons should be taught in Bahasa Malaysia at all schools. – September 29, 2019.

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Comments

  • Were heading the way of Pakistan.

    Posted 4 years ago by Simple Sulaiman · Reply

  • How is that compared with the daily Azan calls? Do they both have the proselytising effect?

    Posted 4 years ago by Tanahair Ku · Reply

  • What nonsense is the Ministry doing - mulling action against mission school after prayer complaint? This is giving face (BAGI MUKA) to the racists and bigots who are out to stir unwarranted trouble. This is a mission school. It is school culture to start lessons or functions with a prayer. Isn't it the same in the Sekolah Kebangsaan, or official functions? Can I make a police report if Doa is recited at a function where I (a non-Muslim) is present? Will the police take action? If some bigoted Muslims have problems with Christian prayers in Mission Schools, they should just avoid them like the plague. Why send thier children there when there are so many Sekolah Kebangsaan? Or they could join the over 100,000 Malay children already in the Chinese schools. What law did the school break? In the 1950's and 60's there were hundreds of thousands of Malay/Muslim students in Christian Missionary schools. There was never such a complaint although classes started with the "Lord's prayer" and "Hail Mary". And those Malay children got very good education in these schools. Why must the Ministry play into the hands of the racists and bigots?? Just ignore them. Tell them to take their children out if they are not happy.

    Posted 4 years ago by Ravinder Singh · Reply

  • One would have thought that the work of such little Napoleons would be stopped after the change in government. What is Teo Nie Ching doing here? Why has nothing been done against the Malay pressure group that chose to intrude into an event at a Christian mission school?

    Posted 4 years ago by Leong Hong · Reply