KLANG, 6 Dec: The Chief Minister of Selangor, Mohamed Azmin Ali, confessed relief after the return of the Bibles and unravels the best solution after the issue lasted since January.
He said that the practice of tolerance and mutual respect is essential because Selangor and Malaysia has a multi-racial population.
“On behalf of the Selangor government, I am happy that the Bibles were finally returned to the Christian community.
“It was a hard decision to make due to a lot of pressure and influence from certain groups,” he said in front of about 250 guests at the Sri Andalas Christmas Celebration yesterday.
Also present was the Sri Andalas Assemblyman Xavier Jeyakumar, and the Meru Assemblyman, Dr Rani Osman, as well as some Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) leaders.
The guests were entertained by musical performances by BEC Sentosa D that delivered Christmas songs as well as Sarawak cultural dances.
On November 14, the Sultan of Selangor, Sultan Sharafuddin Idris Shah, ordered the return of 351 Bibles containing the word ‘Allah’, which were seized early this year, to the Association of Churches Sarawak (ACS) during a courtesy call from the Chairman of ACS, Most Revered Archbishop Datuk Bolly Lapok, at the Alam Shah Palace in Klang.
In relation to that, Mohamed Azmin said that religious extremist groups have no place in Selangor and the harmony of the multiracial community will continue to be maintained.
NS
