Stop students from eating in toilets — Peace Ambassador
KOTA KINABALU: Education Minister Datuk Muhyidin Yassin has been urged to immediately look into and stop the ugly incidences of schools or school teachers requiring non-Muslim students to take their food or water in the toilets during the fasting month.
Datuk Henrynus Amin who was recently appointed Peace Ambassador for the newly set up Christian organization, Christian for Peace and Harmony Trust (CPHT), said he was appalled to hear what Muslim teachers are doing to alienate non-Muslim pupils by treating them in such shoddy manner.
He said these Muslim teachers should realise that they cannot insult non-Muslim pupils by casting them out to the toilets to eat as filthy human being.
“Apart from the hygiene and safety risks in forcing these pupils to eat and drink in the toilet, there is also the deep scar of shame inflicted on them, for no fault of their own.
“So I urge the Education Minister to stop this nonsence of forcing non Muslim pupils to hide in the toilet to eat food and drink water during the fasting month,” he said in a statement yesterday.
Henrynus added while the holy month of Ramadhan should be respected by all Malaysians, subjecting these innocent pupils to such raw treatment is formenting anger, hatred, distrust and discontents among non-Muslims.
“This is an act of total disrespect of the civil rights of non Muslims,” he said without mincing his words.
He urged schools or school teachers to use a little bit of imagination on how to deal with the needs of non-Muslim students to eat food or drink water during recess during the fasting month.
He said instead of using toilets, schools should provide nonMuslim students with a proper place or room to allow them to eat food and drink water during the fasting month hidden from other Muslim students.
He said school policy forcing non-Muslim students to eat in the toilet during fasting month is detrimental to peace and harmony and therefore must be put to stop immediately.
Henrynus who is a former member of parliament and PBS secretary general, said requiring non-Muslim pupils to eat in the toilets during fasting month can be misconstrued as religious insult or prejudice, even discrimination or persecution.
“I am sure the school authorities or school teachers have no intention of insulting these non-Muslim students during the holy month of Ramadhan,” he said.
Henrynus said he was speaking out of concern for the deep scars of shame and anger in the hearts and minds of these affected non-Muslim students experiencing religious prejudice while in school.
He said these non-Muslim students would probably grow up with a very wrong or negative views of the Muslim faith with very far reaching consequences to peace and harmony.
He said the Christian for Peace and Harmony Trust (CPHT) will continue to be concerned and will therefore closely monitor development in Christian and Muslim relations.
He said CPHT plans to engage the Muslim community constructively and take measures to resolve any misunderstanding in order to promote peace and harmony.
Henrynus meanwhile lauded the bold stand taken by the Chief Ministers of Sabah and Sarawak in their resolve to make religious issues a non issue.
He said Christians in Sabah and Sarawak welcome the position taken by these two East Malaysian Chief Ministers to confront and stop the export of religious extremism from West Malaysia to East Malaysian states.
Henrynus also hailed the decision by Rural and Regional Development Minister Datuk Seri Mohd Shafie Apdal to finally allow Christian students to use MARA school facilities for their activities.
He said the federal minister had several months ago announced his decision nullifying government policy directives intended for MARA schools in West Malaysia in the 1970s to deny Christian students in Sabah and Sarawak the use of MARA school facilities for their Christian activities.
He said Christians in Sabah and Sarawak welcomed the announcement as they believe policy directives by federal ministries or agencies intended for implementation in West Malaysia should not be implemented in Sabah and Sarawak wholesale or at face value.
“Sabah and Sarawak are fundamentally different in terms of their racial and religious composition compared to West Malaysia.”
He said the circumstances leading to participation of Sabah and Sarawak in the formation of Malaysia are fundamentally different as many safeguards including the freedom of religion were constitutionally guaranteed.
He said the natives of the interior of Sabah, notably the Momogun (Kadazan Dusun Murut) community, take the Keningau oath stone, especially provisions for freedom of religion, very seriously and will fight to uphold their rights to freedom of religion.
“We hope the relevant authorities understand the sentiments of the non-Muslim community on this particular issue and act accordingly and correctly to restore trust and confidence in our schools.