EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
- Selangor is a prized state for any political party contesting in Malaysia, given its strategic location on the peninsula in close proximity to the federal territories of Kuala Lumpur and Putrajaya. It boasts a record of impressive economic performance and has higher than average income levels relative to other states in the country.
- Funding for the Islamic administration in Selangor has increased year by year since the era of Pakatan Rakyat (PR) through to the Pakatan Harapan (PH) period, and now under the Unity Government. As in other states in Malaysia, Islamic affairs in Selangor fall under the purview of the Malay Ruler, who is advised by religious authorities, particularly the mufti. However, Parti Islam SeMalaysia (PAS)’s narrative that Islamic practices and institutions in Selangor are threatened under the PH government seems to have resonated, judging from the results of the 2023 state elections.
- The state government’s initiative to develop Islam in Selangor is largely limited to organising festivals or specific events for Muslims, focusing on mosques and suraus. At the same time, Selangor attempts to regulate private tahfiz centres by requiring them to register under the Selangor Islamic Religious Department (JAIS), though this has been portrayed by PAS as oppressive. A less controversial initiative is the effort to harness information technology for better efficient administration of religious affairs in the state.
- The attitude of Selangor’s religious authorities towards Christian minorities, or even minorities within Islam itself, demonstrates the urgent need for a more sophisticated religious outlook. Although Selangor’s urban and economically vibrant setting might appear conducive towards promoting a more modern and inclusive orientation, this is constrained by the strongly rooted influence of traditional Islam and the political imperative for PH to contain PAS’s momentum.
* Mohd Faizal Musa is Visiting Fellow at the Regional Social and Cultural Studies Programme at ISEAS – Yusof Ishak Institute and Research Fellow at Institute of Malay World and Civilization (ATMA), National University of Malaysia (UKM).
ISEAS Perspective 2024/83, 14 October 2024
INTRODUCTION
At the Selangor State Legislative Assembly’s Third Meeting of the Fourth Session in 2016, Saari Sungib, then Member of the Selangor State Legislative Assembly (MLA) for Hulu Kelang (March 2008 to August 2023), asked if the state government had any plans to build Islamic Complexes in all districts across the state. Ahmad Yunus Hairi from Parti Islam SeMalaysia (PAS) responded that the Selangor State Executive Council did have such plans, allocating RM30 million to each district.[1] The total amount set aside for the project would be more than RM270 million. This large sum is an indication of the state’s commitment to Islamic affairs and its plans for a stronger promotion of religion to take root in society.
It should be noted that PAS was part of the Selangor government from 2008 to 2018 and held the religious affairs portfolio in 2016. This was also the year in which Parti Amanah Negara (Amanah)—a breakaway party from PAS—was formed. While PAS was adamant that they did not want to work with the Democratic Action Party (DAP) which was also in the Pakatan Rakyat (PR) coalition, the formation of Amanah presented a challenge to them. At that time, they still had not decided whether to remain in the coalition or to go solo in the following General Election (GE).[2]
In 2023, the Selangor Islamic Religious Department (JAIS) received RM56.4 million from the Federal Government, which was meant to be channelled through the Department of Islamic Development Malaysia (JAKIM).[3] Additionally, the Selangor state government itself allocated RM582.63 million to JAIS, an amount that was 39 per cent higher than the amount allocated when Azmin Ali was chief minister in 2016 and 2017.[4] In fact, the amount allocated to Islamic affairs when PAS was in the Selangor government never surpassed the amount given by Pakatan Harapan under current Chief Minister Amirudin Shari (People’s Justice Party, PKR).[5]
Following their strong performance during GE15 in November 2022, PAS sought to wrestle Selangor from Pakatan Harapan (PH) during the state election in 2023. In collaboration with Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia (Bersatu), they hoped to win 33 out of 56 seats to form a simple majority in the state government.[6] Given Selangor’s consistent economic and development record, PAS only had one political card to play; that Islam in Selangor was under threat.[7] They went as far as to claim that the state government had plans to close more than 80 private religious schools, and that Shariah law would no longer be applied in Selangor.[8] These baseless claims angered the Selangor Ruler, Sultan Sharafuddin Idris who directly warned PAS against making such slanderous claims.[9]
With this context in mind, two issues are at stake. First, what are the state government’s initiatives to curb and delay PAS’ march towards Shah Alam? Secondly, and more broadly, what is Selangor’s face of Islam, especially in view of PAS’ conservative orientation?
SELANGOR: THE GOLDEN STATE
Situated on the west coast in central Peninsular Malaysia, Selangor is one of Malaysia’s 13 states. It surrounds the Federal Territories of Kuala Lumpur and Putrajaya and is bordered by Perak to the north, Pahang to the east, Negeri Sembilan to the south, and the Straits of Malacca to the west. Selangor is currently under the reign of Sultan Sharafuddin Idris Shah Al-Haj. Since 10 March 2008, PR has ruled the state, after taking power from Barisan Nasional (BN).
Selangor comprises of four major cities: Klang, Petaling Jaya, Subang Jaya, and Shah Alam.[10] It is divided into nine districts: Gombak, Hulu Langat, Hulu Selangor, Klang, Kuala Langat, Kuala Selangor, Petaling, Sabak Bernam, and Sepang, and is the richest state in Malaysia based on Gross Domestic Product (GDP) per capita.[11] It is certainly the most developed state in Malaysia, with top-notch highways and public transportation infrastructure. The state’s population is the largest at 6,994,423, with Muslims comprising 61.1 percent, and a considerable number of young people in their 30s and 40s.[12] It also boasts a high quality of life and the lowest poverty rate in the country.[13]
Due to it being a developed and urbanised state, one might expect that Selangor’s approach towards Islam might be different from other states. The influence of geographical location on one’s religious outlook is far from a foreign concept in Islamic history.[14] As a modern metropolitan state, Selangor has the potential to craft its own outlook of Islam and jurisprudence; one that celebrates the constitution, democracy, the benefits of political opposition, pluralism, civil society, and human rights. Such an approach could still be balanced with that espoused by religious institutions in the country. However, this does not seem to be the case.[15]
INSTITUTIONALISED ISLAM IN SELANGOR
Islam in Malaysia is administered by religious institutions, and any trends in Islamic practices are thus shaped significantly by these. Similar to other states in the Federation of Malaysia, Islamic affairs in Selangor are managed by their own religious council, or the Selangor Islamic Religious Council (MAIS). The mufti, who heads the council, has the authority to issue fatwas which are then gazetted to become part of the state’s shariah law. The mufti also plays the role of advising the sultan—regarded as the head of religion in each state—on religious affairs.
Selangor is not without controversy in the gazetting of contentious fatwas, such as the fatwa declaring the influential non-governmental organisation “Sisters in Islam” as deviant on the grounds that the organisation promotes Liberal Islam;[16] taking a hard stance against followers of Shi’a Islam which led to international protests against religious institutions in Malaysia;[17] and upholding the mainstream fatwa against the Qadiani or Ahmadiyya sect.[18]
The above-mentioned religious groups can all be found in Selangor. In many cases, the Sultan of Selangor will issue edicts to ensure that the teachings and activities of these groups are contained. For example, in 2018, the sultan expressed a desire for Selangor not to become a centre for the spread of misguided ideologies and beliefs, referring to—“Liberal Islam”—and instructed the Selangor Islamic Religious Department to “strengthen enforcement actions against all parties found attempting to spread any forms of beliefs that are contrary to Islamic teachings or have been declared deviant and heretical”.[19]
This attitude towards religious minorities and affairs does not reflect the expected attitude of a modern and developed state such as Selangor, and indicates that the state does not intend to adopt an approach beyond the mainstream one exemplified by the traditional Islam found in Kelantan, or by the Wahhabism (disguised as Sunni Islam) in Perlis. Such a modern approach could adopt fiqh al-aqalliyat or “minority jurisprudence”, which espouses a tolerant attitude towards religious minorities. This latter branch of jurisprudence emphasises the use of maqasid al-syariah (the ultimate aims and intents of shariah)[20] in determining religious affairs.[21]
In other words, Selangor chooses not to celebrate diversity within Islam. This is arguably a missed opportunity to explore a different and unique path of “Selangor Islam”. In fact, Selangor needs to urgently use maqasid al-syariah and “minority jurisprudence”, since religious minorities in Selangor are more exposed to violence and discrimination in comparison to other states. Often, it is Muslims who perpetrate such violence and discrimination. This can be argued, for example, when considering the attacks on several churches in 2010 following the dispute over the use of the term “Allah”[22] and the enforced disappearance of Pastor Raymond Koh in 2017.[23]
The only notable and relatively unique effort that institutional Islam in Selangor has introduced comes in the form of efforts to improve services and efficiency through smart technology, specifically by implementing digitisation and better access to online religious information. For example, in order to reduce electricity wastage, some mosques use automatic lighting. Some also use big data and cloud computing in religious administration and governance.[24] This sophistication in technology use is a demand of the times and is not related to differences in discourse, developments, and the emergence of specific trends, or to abstract religious practices that may need to be monitored.
TRENDS OF ISLAM IN SELANGOR
A common misperception about Islam in Selangor is that the state is lax in religious practice and suffers from a dearth of qualified religious teachers.[25] However, if one thoroughly examines the background and history of traditional Islam in Selangor, one would find this perception to be incorrect. For instance, in 2016 alone, there were 2,071 religious scholars and teachers providing instructions in traditional Islamic texts known as kitab kuning.[26] Furthermore, it is easy to list renowned scholars active in the state. such as Tengku Mahmud Zuhdi al-Fathani, Kiyai Muhammad Ali Qaribun, Kiyai Khalil Ibn Abu ‘Ammar, and Kiyai Haji Hussain Bin Haji Abbas.
Before independence, there were many pondok (traditional religious boarding schools) in Selangor.[27] For example, there were Pondok Syeikh Suhaimi Sungai Udang Klang (1920), Pondok Kiyai Muhammad Ali Sijangkang (1927), Pondok Kiyai Darda’ Sungai Pinang Klang (1937), and Pondok Kiyai Khalil bin Abi Ammar al-Jawi in Bukit Naga (1940). In addition to these private pondok, there were also religious schools established by the Selangor state government such as Madrasah Awamiah in Kampung Sepintas, Sabak Bernam (1930), Sekolah Agama Parit Baru (1933), Madrasah Marta il Ulum al-Diniah Klang (now Sekolah Hishamuddin Sungai Bertih Klang), Madrasah Parit Lima Sungai Besar (1937), and the most well-known, Kolej Islam Klang (1955) renamed Kolej Islam Sultan Alam Shah in 1989). The school has produced many prominent scholars including the current Mufti of Selangor, Dr Anhar Opir and the chairperson of the Selangor Islamic Religious and Cultural Innovation Committee, Dr Mohammad Fahmi Ngah, Overall, these pondok and religious schools are generally supported by the Selangor royal family.
Selangor also has stringent regulations for granting licenses to religious teachers, as well as revoking them. Most recently, the state revoked the teaching license of celebrity preacher Don Daniyal Don Biyajid for frequently spreading misinformation about Islam.[28] This demonstrates that Selangor is committed to curbing the spread of teachings which deviate from orthodox teachings. Similar cases have happened with preachers such as Dusuki Abdul Rani and Abdullah Khairi,[29] Wan Ji Wan Hussin,[30] and Perlis Mufti Mohd Asri Zainul Abidin.[31] Religious authorities also occasionally conduct unscheduled inspections at surau and mosques, sometimes arresting unlicensed religious preachers on the spot.[32]
Additionally, Selangor has witnessed a trend of West-based scholars conducting paid lectures, such as Omar Suleiman. Omar, who graduated from the International Islamic University Malaysia, later founded an Islamic think tank based in Texas.[33] Other notable speakers in the past include Nouman Ali Khan,[34] Ismail Menk, Muhammad Salah, Sheikh Saeed Rageah and Aburraheem Green.[35]
Since 2023, the Selangor government has been organising the Turath Islami festival to enhance Islamic scholarship while strengthening the faith of the Muslim community and fostering a better and more balanced society. According to Selangor Menteri Besar (Chief Minister) Amirudin Shari, “this initiative aims, among other things, to prevent the controversy that efforts to uphold and develop Islam need to be carried out by inflaming public sentiment and emotions: The (Selangor) state government leadership believes that to elevate Islam, it should be filled with knowledge and spiritual activities prescribed by the religion, rather than merely using sentiment and emotion. Therefore, the organisation of this festival is intended to impart useful knowledge, accompanied by dhikr (remembrance of God), salawat (prayers for the Prophet), and cultural and artistic activities that will ultimately shape our meaningful inner selves”.[36] The events of this festival include the Daurah Hadis 40 programme, the Al Wahyu: Islamic Scholarship Traditions of the Malay World Exhibition, lectures, academic discussions, and salawat programmes, involving 23 Islamic scholars and intellectuals from both within and outside the country.
While these events might appear to be carefully curated by the religious authorities, they are not sufficient as examples of a unique form of Islam being practised in Selangor. Other states such as Terengganu and Kedah also organise similar Islamic festivals. While they may not be held as regularly or on as large a scale as they are in Selangor, the concept is similar.
However, while the government appears to pay attention to activities for the Muslim community, they do not give the same attention to religious minorities despite the attacks against the latter, as mentioned earlier. In fact, they did the reverse. For example, while claiming to curb the extremism of groups such as the Islamic State, they clamp down on liberal Muslims and Shi’a Muslims whom they claim to practise deviant teachings.[37] It is not unlikely that the government took such action as pre-emptive moves since they are aware that PAS is often looking for weaknesses or reasons to criticise the PH government for not doing enough to protect the Muslim community.
OBSTRUCTING PAS
As mentioned earlier, PAS’ clichéd yet effective political narrative is that Islam is under threat under PH. Although this claim is merely an allegation, it appears to be an easy bait for voters in Selangor. PAS Youth have also made claims that the Syariah Criminal Enactment in the state is under threat. In response, Dr Mohammad Fahmi Ngah said that such claims were mistruths.[38] Yet, GE15 saw PAS-dominated PN’s share of seats in Selangor increase from 5 to 22, while PH’s seats decreased from 45 to 34, thus missing out on a two-thirds majority in the state assembly.[39] However, despite PAS’ dramatic rise in influence, no clear steps have been taken by the PH government to slow this trend.
While several Islamic programmes have been introduced, their impact on curbing the spread of PAS’ ideology is uncertain. An example is the Selangor Bertadabbur 2024 programme, aimed at revitalising certain surau (small prayer areas) in the state. This event has been held for six years, with unsatisfactory results if PAS’ rise is used as an indicator.[40] A similar programme is Kembara Masjid Selangor, where Dr Fahmi, sometimes accompanied by Amirudin Shari, meets congregants in selected mosques across Selangor.[41] One of Dr Fahmi’s efforts to possibly control PAS’ influence in tahfiz (schools for memorising Qur’an) schools is by urging these centres to register themselves with the religious authorities. Despite these efforts, there are 724 Private Tahfiz Institutions (ITP) operating in the state that are still unregistered with JAIS.[42] It should be noted that the move to register tahfiz schools—which was a directive issued by the sultan—was manipulated by PH’s opponents during the state elections to stand as a threat to Islam. This contributed to PH’s loss of seats, something acknowledged by Mohd Sabu himself, the president of Amanah.[43]
CONCLUSION
The discussion above illustrates how the Selangor state government has not seized the opportunity to craft its own approach to Islam based on maqasid al-shariah. Instead, it has reinforced a traditional Islamic approach which has resulted in the oppression of religious minorities in the state. It is arguable that the government adopted this approach to limit criticism by PAS. Furthermore, since Selangor is urbanised, cosmopolitan and sophisticated, Islamic institutions might feel the need to respond to PAS’ assertions and grievances with a more conservative approach as a show of force.
Yet, despite their awareness of growing extremism in the state—partially attributed to PAS—the government has not introduced any clear initiatives to restrain PAS’ influence. The government’s actions have only served to further suppress religious minorities instead of protecting them. As a result, the situation in Selangor is worse than it is in some other states.
If PH fails to address the political narrative that Islam is under threat in Selangor, alongside taking meaningful steps to curb PAS’ rise, it is not unlikely that Selangor could fall to PN in the upcoming election in 2027.
A potential model of inspiration for Selangor in pioneering their own unique approach towards Islam could be that of the contemporary Syrian thinker Muhammad Syahrur whose approach attempts to balance Sunni Islamic epistemologies with modern day challenges, taking into account historical contexts, political structures, and institutions.[44] To be sure, Syahrur’s ideas are based on lessons learned from crises in the Middle East, a region ridden with challenges such as corruption, economic inequality, poverty, neo-colonialism, radicalism, marginalisation, and an intellectual crisis. But to be sure, Southeast Asians face similar challenges. In the Malaysian context, the application of Syahrur’s approach is in fact in line with maqasid al-shariah as highlighted in Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim’s Madani framework.[45]
The Selangor government should not just be preoccupied with digital advancements. It should also focus on becoming a pioneer of “Selangor Islam”. Already equipped with the necessary capital and resources, and being centrally situated, Selangor has the potential of being a role model for all other states.
ENDNOTES
For endnotes, please refer to the original pdf document.
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