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ENVIRONMENT-MALAYSIA: Water a Sacred Gift Affirm Interfaith Leaders

Anil Netto

PENANG, Aug 9 2007 (IPS) - When religious leaders from different faiths sought to jointly affirm the sacredness of water as the source of life but were shooed away by authorities, it was seen as a move to scuttle interfaith harmony as well as support plans to privatise a common resource.

Plans to hold the highly symbolic interfaith forum on the right to water at the National Mosque, a major landmark in the capital Kuala Lumpur, on Saturday had to be scuttled when the organisers were suddenly forced to shift the venue to a location five km way.

But, the last-minute change did not stop prominent leaders of the Muslim, Buddhist, Christian, Hindu, and Sikh faiths from signing a landmark joint declaration on water and affirm that the element is a sacred gift bestowed by the creator to people to be conserved and used to fulfil the basic needs of all living things on earth.

&#39&#39It symbolises life in its pristine form,&#39&#39 they declared. &#39&#39The right to water is intrinsically linked to the right to life.&#39&#39 They also stressed that the right to water entitles everyone to &#39&#39sufficient, safe, acceptable, physically accessible and affordable water&#39&#39. The use of prepaid cards and water disconnections would be in violation of this right, they noted. The State needs to uphold and promote the right. &#39&#39Access to water therefore cannot be premised on profitability. People should enjoy this right without discrimination.&#39&#39

The religious leaders stressed that the state must ensure that this right is also upheld in the policies of the private water sector. They added that water conservation, preservation and protection was the responsibility of the people and the state.

But the proceedings at the forum, attended by some 200 people, were largely overshadowed by the external circumstances leading up to the event having to change venue. &#39&#39This was a great missed opportunity when all the religions could have come together (at the National Mosque) and discussed a critical issue confronting society,&#39&#39 said Charles Santiago, coordinator of the Coalition Against Water Privatisation. Holding it at the National Mosque &#39&#39would have fostered a very good spirit in the context of 50 years of Merdeka to discuss the human right to water&#39&#39.


Moreover, said Santiago, it would have been a great moment in the country, presently divided on issues of ethnicity and religion especially between advocates of a conservative Islamic state and those who prefer a more liberal tradition.

On July 31, Santiago said the mosque authorities had warmly received a delegation from the organisers. Mosque officials told the organisers that the seminar would be unprecedented and historic and it was in line with official guidelines to engage with civil society. They also advised the organisers on the proper attire for participants at the seminar. Organisers however allege that police subsequently put pressure on the mosque authorities to rescind their verbal approval.

On Aug 2, a letter was issued by the chief imam of the National Mosque refusing to grant permission. Organisers then applied for a police permit. When they contacted the police on Aug 3, Santiago said they were told that the permit had been approved and it could be collected later that day. But when one of the organisers turned up to collect the permit he was questioned at length and the permit was denied. Organisers allege that the police or outside parties &#39&#39manufactured information&#39&#39 to create a situation of fear, uneasiness and uncertainty. This led to the &#39&#39National Mosque officials deciding not to host the meeting at the National Mosque in spite of having earlier agreed to the event being held there,&#39&#39 they said in a formal complaint to the Human Rights Commission of Malaysia (Suhakam).

The organisers said they found such actions bordering on total disrespect and an attempt to thwart civil society efforts to deliberate and discuss issues confronting society. The conduct and actions of the authorities &#39&#39demonstrated that they or the parties that gave them the instructions were unhappy that people of all faiths, and races are coming together to deliberate and discuss societal issues and future of the country&#39&#39.

They also wondered aloud whether such actions were being carried out on behalf of business interests in the water sector. In recent years, Malaysia has seen private corporations eyeing the water sector in search of lucrative profits while water management has been revamped in a move that would allow private firms to profit from billions of dollars in water infrastructure development projects.

But Human Rights Commissioner Siva Subramaniam, after a meeting with the district police chief responsible for the area, said that police told him they had rejected the permit on technical grounds. &#39&#39They said the Imam Besar had not given permission to hold the meeting (at the mosque) and he had issued a rejection letter on Aug 2,&#39&#39 Siva told IPS.

Moreover, the police said the organisers needed five clear days to apply for the permit and they had to attach the permission of the owners of the premises in their permit application.&#39&#39 The rumours of potential unrest and protests were never a consideration in rejecting the permit, said Siva.

For Chandra Muzaffar, director of the International Movement for a Just World, the attitude of the police was most unfortunate: &#39&#39This was an event that would have brought the various religious groups together.&#39&#39 Chandra, who delivered the keynote address at the forum, cited a factor that could have been responsible for the forced change of venue. &#39&#39The forum would have taken a critical position on the state&#39s policy towards water.&#39&#39 It was unfortunate that the police seemed more interested in protecting the interests of the state rather than the people, he observed. He added there was also a symbolic dimension to this, as the nation gears up to celebrate 50 years of Merdeka (independence) from British colonial rule.

&#39&#39The whole event raises fundamental questions about the nature of our Merdeka,&#39&#39 said Chandra, pointing out that laws that restrict the right to freedom of assembly are legacies of the colonial era that remain in the statute books when they should have been abolished.

 
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