MALAYSIA’S government has decided to permit calls for the burning of Malay-language editions of the Bible that contain the word “Allah” for God.
This follows a Supreme Court ruling that “Allah” can be used only by Muslims, despite the term’s widespread, longstanding use by other faiths, including by Sikhs and Jews as well as by Christians.
The government pursued the issue through the courts after the use of the term in a Catholic newspaper was at first found to be constitutional.
The Supreme Court verdict was cheered by Muslim activists waving banners that read: “Uniting to defend the name of Allah.”
Malaysia’s Christian minority comprises almost 10 per cent — mainly ethnically Chinese — of the 30 million population.
Bibles were seized by authorities this year as tensions rose over the use of “Allah”. Politician Ibrahim Ali, founder of the Malay nationalist Perkasa organisation, pledged to burn Bibles that contained the word.
(edit: the link doesn't work, but you can Google the story to read all of it)