KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 5 (Bernama) — Missionaries from abroad must undergo police vetting for green light to give lectures in Malaysia.
This is to ensure extreme beliefs, including those with militant elements do not spread in the country, says Bukit Aman Special Branch’s Principal Assistant Director of Counter Terrorism, SAC Datuk Ayob Khan Mydin Pitchay.
He said, as such, a mechanism should be created to filter missionaries from abroad.
He said based on past experiences, ideologies with militant elements and extremism were brought by foreigners into the country, among them, the Jemaah Islamiyah and Jemaah Anshorut Tauhid (JAT).
“If possible, every preacher or foreign speaker who comes for religious sermons should be adequately screened by the police first…which means, the religious departments should refer them to us first, and we screen them before they (the department) commission them.
“An important aspect is to control or curb the entry of individuals or so-called preachers, but they bring in extremist ideologies that are contrary to true Islamic foundations,” he told Bernama after becoming a panel member at the Purification of Faith 2014; Reining in Extremist Religious Doctrines Seminar here.
— BERNAMA
