by MANIRAJAN RAMASAMY & LIAU Y-SING
Some of Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak’s cabinet have spoken out in dissent over a bill that would let a single parent or guardian convert their child to Islam without their partner’s consent.
The proposed change has sparked protests from the prime minister’s biggest coalition partners, as well as leaders of religious and ethnic minorities in the Muslim-majority nation. The row comes as parliament resumed last week after May’s general election which saw support for the government slide to its lowest level in more than 55 years.
“Certain sections of the bill can be detrimental to non-Muslims,” G. Palanivel, a minister who heads the Malaysian Indian Congress party in Najib’s governing Barisan Nasional coalition, said in a phone interview. “The government should propose a fairer version of the bill, taking into account individual rights and civil liberties.”
The heads of some other parties representing minority groups in Najib’s coalition, including the Malaysian Chinese Association, have also protested the proposed amendment, testing the alliance’s unity as economic growth slows. Net foreign direct investment dropped 17 percent last year to $10.1 billion as spending in neighbors including Singapore and Indonesia increased, according to a report by the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development last week.
Bloomberg for more
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