MPs ask Putrajaya to drop appeal on High Court’s quashing of ‘Allah’ ban

[superadmin]

Sabahan, Sarawakian MPs ask Putrajaya to drop appeal on High Court’s quashing of ‘Allah’ ban, to end east Malaysians’ pain

KUALA LUMPUR, March 16 — A total of 53 federal and state lawmakers from Sabah and Sarawak have come together in a bipartisan effort to ask the federal government to discontinue its appeal against the High Court’s quashing of a decades-old government ban on the word “Allah” in Christian publications.

In a joint statement, the lawmakers also urged for a national reconciliation and for the government to let the High Court decision stand in order to see an end to the pain felt by the local Christian community — especially in Sabah and Sarawak — who mainly speak Bahasa Malaysia and their indigenous languages — languages which use the word “Allah” to refer to God.

“We call upon Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin to withdraw the Federal Government’s appeal against the High Court’s decision, so that the 35-year-old polemic and the pain felt by so many Sabahans, Sarawakians and Orang Asli may finally end. It would be a positive legacy for the prime minister.

“We call upon all political parties to not exploit the High Court’s decision for narrow political mileage. Let this be a closure for all and a step forward in national reconciliation so that we meet Allah’s plan that makes us different for us to know and love each other,” the lawmakers said in the statement.

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