KUALA LUMPUR – The Catholic Church was banned by a Malaysian court from using the word “Allah” yesterday.
The court upheld a government ban that has become a symbol of religious tensions in the Muslim-majority country.
The federal government stops non-Muslims in Malaysia from translating God as “Allah” in their liturgy, saying it would confuse Muslims.
Christian groups say the ban is unconstitutional and argue that the word “Allah” predates Islam.
The Malaysian high court rejected an appeal by the Church’s main publication in the country, the Herald, to have the ban suspended while waiting for a court decision on its legality.
The high court will hear the Herald’s original appeal against the 2007 ban on July 7th. It ruled yesterday that suspending the ban would contravene the laws of states that impose similar bans.
The ban affects the Malay-language edition of the Herald, which is read mostly by indigenous tribes who converted to Christianity decades ago. The Mandarin, English and Tamil editions do not use the word “Allah”. – (AP)