I’ve recently been informed that I’ll be joining a delegation of Australians visiting Malaysia as part of an exchange program organised by the Australia Malaysia Institute. The delegation will be in Malaysia during late June and will spend some 7 days or so meeting people from across the spectrum of Malaysian society.
This will be my first trip to Malaysia, a country that has proven a popular holiday and honeymoon destination for Aussie Muslims.
Hopefully over the next few posts, I will explore the various cultures and religions of Malaysia. Many readers will already be familiar with Malaysia’s multi-ethnic and multi-confessional composition.
I’d also invite readers to share their own experiences of Malaysia via the comments section of this blog.
© Irfan Yusuf 2006
1 comment:
What you should investigate while you are there is the growing Islamification of this country that previously derived much pride from its multi-cultural status.
For instance: The police force now requires all women - Muslim and non-Muslim to wear the tudong.
A number of Hindu temples, some over 100 years old and built during the colonial period have been destroyed, even while people were praying inside.
Please investigate why it is so difficult to renounce Islam and get the religous identiy changes on Malaysian identity cards.
Investigate whether its true, that Malaysia is losing a lot of its Malay culture, because a stricter interpretation of Islam is declaring it non-Islamic?
There have been so many incidents in Malaysia, suggesting that this country is turning its back on its multi-cultural identity. This is just another sign of an increasingly strident and intolerant Islam that is making its presence felt on this planet.
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