M'SIAN PM NAJIB ACKNOWLEDGES ROLE OF INTER-RELIGIOUS COMMITTEE

KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 17 (Bernama) -- Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak has
expressed the hope of seeing Malaysia remain peaceful with intra- and
inter-group unity prevailing in all the races.

He said this at a meeting with the Inter-Religious Committee to Promote
Mutual Understanding and Harmony among Religions held on Sept 14 at his office
in Putrajaya.

Committee chairman Ilani Isahak, who is also the special coordinator
to promote inter-religious understanding and harmony, said in a statement Friday
that Najib regarded the meeting as the beginning and acknowledged the need for
many more meetings with the committee.

"He stated his support for the committee as a mechanism which can resolve
problems or issues, and stated his agreement to allocate a budget to assist the
work of the committee," she said.

Ilani said the committee was established to foster harmony in the community
in keeping with the desire of the 1Malaysia concept to elevate unity to a more
meaningful level.

The two advisors of the committee, ministers in the Prime Minister's
Department Dr Koh Tsu Koon and Maj Gen (Rtd) Jamil Khir Baharom, also attended
the meeting.

The delegation, which was headed by Ilani, comprised representatives from
the Islamic Development Department of Malaysia (Jakim), Institute of Islamic
Understanding Malaysia (Ikim), Allied Coordinating Committee of Islamic NGOs
(ACCIN), World Fatwa Management and Research Institute (Infad), Malaysian
Consultative Council on Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism, Sikhism and Taoism
(MCCBCHST) and Interfaith Spiritual Fellowship (INSaF).

MCCBCHST president Rev Dr Thomas Philips said Najib's willingness to spend
time to meet with the committee was a manifestation of his commitment and
earnestness to transform the country and foster unity founded on the 1Malaysia
concept.
-- BERNAMA