MALAYSIANS SHOULD CHERISH RELIGIOUS FREEDOM, HOLIDAYS

KUALA LUMPUR, June 19 (Bernama)-- Annual religious holidays and the freedom
to practise their own religious beliefs are something Malaysians should not take
for granted.

Muhammad Umar, chairman of the Ramadhan Foundation, a non-profit
organisation based in the United Kingdom promoting racial and religious unity,
said Malaysia may be the only country in the world that acknowledges the
diverse ethnic backgrounds and religious differences of its people by marking
their religious festivals as national holidays.

Muhammad, who has been invited to Malaysia numerous times to give lectures
and engage in dialogues, said he still marvelled at the idea of a Muslim country
that allows such religious freedom.

"What I want to say to people (in Malaysia) who contribute towards
disunity is to try living in other parts of the world where you are practising
the religion of the minority.

"You'll find that they won't get enough respect to have an annual day off,"
he told Bernama in an interview here recently.

He cited the example of a Malaysian friend of his who attended a missionary
school here.

"These are Christian schools which preach their religion to their people and
(that too) in Malaysia, a Muslim country. To have churches and temples where
different communities can practise their religion with freedom is unique.

"Malaysians should really appreciate what they have. I have never witnessed
this anywhere else, not even in Western countries, which are seen as so
developed," he said.

Muhammad, who arrived on June 14 and would be here until the 27th, says his
schedule was booked with a series of lectures and meetings with dignitaries but
says his fact-finding mission also found him talking to the man on the street.

"I'm on a fact-finding mission and want to listen to everyone's point of
view. I talk to taxi drivers and passengers and ask them what they think of
Muslims and Islam.

"I find that a lot of their answers have to do with the behaviour of
Muslims," he said.

He said Muslims need to present themselves with less emotion and with more
practicality.


"We have to stop insulting each other and look at what we have in common,
and based on that common denominator we unite.

"Unity through diversity means uniting through the common visions that we
have although we subscribe to different beliefs," he said.

Muhammad said he also had the pleasure of meeting former Prime Minister
Dr Mahathir Mohamad during his visit to discuss various issues, notably war
crimes.

He said he was responsible in helping arrange Dr Mahathir's appearance on
the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC)'s 'Hardtalk' programme last year, on
which he himself had the distinction of being the youngest guest in 2007.

The Ramadhan Foundation, based in Greater Manchester, England, is the United
Kingdom's leading Muslim youth organisation which works for peaceful
co-existence and dialogue for all communities.

-- BERNAMA