On August 14, G25 sent a letter to the Ministry of Home Affairs objecting to the ban of our book, “Breaking the Silence: Voices of Moderation”, 19 months after its launch officiated by Tengku Razaleigh on December 5, 2015.
The letter explains that the purpose of the book was to explore the concept of moderation in Islam in the context of Malaysia as a constitutional democracy with a national aspiration to be a fully developed country and a model for the Muslim world.
The letter reminds the Ministry that the contents of the book are in line with the position taken by the current Prime Minister of Malaysia, YAB Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak, who had on numerous occasions, both nationally and internationally, supported the concept of “Wasatiyyah”, more commonly known as the movement of moderates.
Our Prime Minister even advocated for increased support towards global peace through inter-religious understanding and tolerance at the 65th United Nations General Assembly on September 17, 2010.
The letter goes on to question the grounds for the ban, which are stated as likely to be prejudicial to public order and cause alarm to public opinion.
On the contrary, the book is in line with the government’s position and has been well-received by many segments of society, including the former prime minister, Tun Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, who wrote the book’s foreword.
In our letter, we requested that the ban be revoked within fourteen (14) days from the date of receipt of the letter. Failure to revoke the ban will leave G25 with no choice but to seek an alternative remedy.
The members of G25 have always had the public and nation’s best interest at heart in all their efforts. We believe that with our wide experience in public service, we have the wealth of knowledge to share on the changes needed to make this country successful.
G25 has no reason to produce a book which will threaten our society and public order. Those who read our book and our articles will know our aim is to educate the public that for peace, stability, and economic progress we need to practise moderation in politics and religion, and to adopt the principles of good governance in the administration of the country.
G25 will soon be publishing a report which will be made public, on the reforms for reinvigorating the economy and ensuring its sustained growth. The report will be drawn from the many articles and seminars that our members have written and organised over the last two and a half years.
G25 is a movement of eminent Malay moderates.
The views expressed are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect those of FMT.