If you subscribe to the WSJ, you can read all of it online here. Otherwise, you can download a printable version of her entire article here (scroll to the bottom).
COMMENTARY
By ANGELA C. WU
September 7, 2006
For more than 40 years, Malaysia has successfully balanced its democratic, secular form of government with its citizens’ deep roots in Islam. Slowly, however, those roots are gradually ripping up the fabric of freedom in the country. No case better exemplifies this conflict than that of Lina Joy, a Muslim-turned-Catholic persecuted for her religion. However it’s resolved, Ms. Joy’s case should expose just how far Malaysia is swinging toward Islamization. […]
Ironically, Shariah law as applied in Malaysia is actually discriminatory only against Muslims, or people the court decides are Muslims — the very people the separate Shariah Courts are supposed to protect. Why? Because every other citizen is afforded the ability to choose his or her own religion except for ethnic Malays, who, born into Islam, have no way out. […]
Some Malaysians argue that freedom of religion is a foreign, Western construct that does not respect the dignity of religious communities. Yet the ability to choose one’s religion comes from a purely Eastern source. Muslims claim the legacy of Abraham, Moses, and Jesus — all considered prophets in Islam — as the very beginnings of Islam. And it is the Judeo-Christian tradition of a higher being who endowed all persons with inalienable dignity, including the dignity to choose God, that is at the very core of religious freedom.
Ms. Joy, now 42, has waited eight years to realize her dream to live and worship freely. Her case represents a critical juncture between constitutional and Shariah law in one of Southeast Asia’s most important countries. Malaysian law does and should protect the freedom of religion of Muslims who willingly profess Islam. Now it is time for the law to protect everyone else, too.
Congratulations, Angela!
P.S. -- I haven't picked-up my copy yet, but rumor has it there's also a profile of Angela in the latest issue of Relevant magazine.
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