The Government Says Allah is an Islamic word and its use by others would mislead Muslims, implying it could be used to convert them to other religions. Allah, an Arabic word, predates Islam and is used by Arabic-speaking Christians in places such as Egypt and Syria.
Protests by Muslim groups, although peaceful, have raised fears of friction between the Malay Muslim Majority and the large ethnic Chinese and Indian minorities, who mainly practice Christianity, Buddhism and Hinduism.
Religious minorities and some moderate Muslims have welcomed the High Court decision as a victory against what they say is religious discrimination Institutionalized here.
Authorities deny any discrimination, but recently confiscated 10.000 copies of Malay-language Bibles containing the word Allah.
The Home Ministry is seeking a Reversal of the Dec. 31 court decision and will ask for the High Court's ruling to be suspended until the appeal is for decided, said government lawyer Mohammad Said Kamaluddin..Read Morehttp://www.nytimes.com/aponline/2010/01/04/world/AP-AS-Malaysia-Allah-Ban.html
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