Acts of Violence Due To Anger And Intolerance

Just when we have just wished one another, "Happy New Year", happiness, good luck and peace, we hear of words of anger, hatred, protests and finally the act of arson. News have spread all over the world about the act of burning of churches in the Klang Valley here. It is the most shameful and shocking news about Malaysia.

What has happened to our country, famous for its multi-racial people who are living in peace and harmony? Are we really serious in fostering goodwill and understanding, love, sharing and caring ? Is it a little too late to instil the spirit of 1 Malaysia? Where had our education system gone wrong that we have to produce such indisciplined youths of today? Is there truly hope for a wonderfully developed Malaysia with its wealth and success being shared equally among its multi-racial citizens? We surely have lots of questions to ask but they may be left unanswered.

Today, my heart bled as I heard of the shocking news and what we feared of had happened. Pray that no lives would be lost too. These terrorist acts should never have happened and everyone should prevent it from happening again before it is too late. The message has been sent that many people are angry over a small matter but it seemed to be very important to many. All sides should have taken care of each other's feelings and no one should behave like heroes and poke fire to make matters worse. More hurt and damage would cause more sufferings to people. It is not so simple to rebuild friendship, goodwill and trust after so much destruction have been done. It takes a lot of time and effort.

The multi ethnic people of Sabah and Sarawak have lived harmoniously for many years. They have used the word,"Allah" to mean God and as they speak Bahasa Malaysia. Nobody raised this issue before until last week when everything exploded, just after the court allowed the Herald to print the word, "Allah" in their Christian magazine. Non-muslims locally or overseas in Indonesia and in the Arab world use the word,"Allah" to mean God. Did the Almighty God state anywhere who should use the word, "Allah" and who should not? I hope all the learned religious scholars will do some research and clear the air. If there is any Quranic verse that states that it is the same GOD then let it be known. This holy word should be respected not to fight about.

But, today the word,"Allah" in Malaysia had caused a lot of troubles, pain and great loss.

Well, since the matter is returned to the court again, everyone should remain calm and trust the court. Hopefully, no one will continue to cause more troubles. Damages and destruction had been done. It is not easy to rebuild churches and it will cost a huge sum to repair them. Who will come forward to help now? Many innocent people have been hurt and the whole world even have voiced their anger over this.

The government, police force, court, religious leaders and politicians should handle this chaotic situation wisely. Such matters can be discussed in a proper manner considering all aspects. It is most important not to mix politics with religion. All religions teach good moral values and it is time to put into practice what is preached. Religions enrich life and help us to be spiritually fulfilled to be a happier person so that we can interact better with others and contribute well to our families and society.

We all hope that Malaysians can really live peacefully and harmoniously. They should be thankful and grateful for this beautiful land. Hopefully, Malaysians will respect one another and be more tolerant, understanding , courteous and united.

Let us build a united, peaceful and prosperous Malaysia together. Allow the future generation to inherit some goodness from us. It is all up to each and everyone of us to save our country or see it being destroyed eventually.