KUALA LUMPUR – The Global Human Rights Federation (GHRF) has called on religious authorities and the Education Ministry to investigate allegations of non-Muslim school students being coerced into converting to Islam.
Its president, S. Shashi Kumar, said that this violates parents’ prerogative to determine their children’s religion below the age of 18.
This came after controversial religious preacher Firdaus Wong uploaded a video to TikTok in which he is seen advising a man on how to manage requests from teenagers interested in converting to Islam.
“In the past, we have lodged many police reports against this preacher, but the police have not taken any action. As such, GHRF urges the Education Ministry, Islamic Development Department, and other Islamic bodies in Malaysia to take responsibility and thoroughly investigate such matters.
“The prevalence of unlawful conversions in Malaysia is a serious issue that needs to be addressed to protect the rights of minors and uphold ethical standards in religious conversions,” he said.
In the video, Firdaus said the teenagers should be welcomed to Islam, but their conversion must not be registered or announced.
He also shared advice on how teenagers can practice Islam discreetly so they can keep it a secret from others.
The video, Shashi said, has received criticism, and some netizens have complained to the NGO on the matter.
“The advice or suggestion proposed by the preacher raises not only ethical concerns regarding the discreet conversion of minors without parental consent but also whether such advice or suggestion would be against the laws of Malaysia and the Federation Constitution,” he said.
Scoop is reaching out to Wong for comments. – June 6, 2024