Information on the role of the government in Muslim proselytizing and on conversion procedures [MYS18832.E]

Please find attached some documents that provide information on Islam in Malaysia and the role of the government in proselytizing. These documents add to the information provided in Responses to Information Requests MYS14272 of 28 May 1993, MYS12209 of 16 November 1992, MYS18725.E of 25 October 1994 and other documents available through your Regional Documentation Centre.

According to an information officer at the High Commission of Malaysia in Ottawa, official acknowledgement of a person's conversion to Islam requires documentary proof issued by an Islamic religious authority or institution (3 Nov. 1994). This document could be a letter or a certificate issued by a Muslim association, a Mosque or an Imam, for example (ibid.). The source added that there are various Muslim sects in Malaysia, and that the actual process of conversion could differ among them, so it would be difficult to generalize about all sects and followers of Islam (ibid.).

This response was prepared after researching publicly accessible information currently available to the DIRB within time constraints. This response is not, and does not purport to be, conclusive as to the merit of any particular claim to refugee status or asylum.

Reference

High Commission of Malaysia, Ottawa. 3 November 1994. Telephone interview with information officer.

Attachments

Financial Times [London]. 3 September 1993. Victor Mullet. "Islam Turns SE Asia's Secular Heads: Several Violent Incidents Have Served as a Reminder of Growing Religious Power." (NEXIS)

Islam and Islamic Groups: A Worldwide Reference Guide. 1992. Edited by Farzana Shaikh. Essex: Longman, pp. 148-51.