Don't let political and religious vultures feed on Loh Siew Hong case

 A paragraph in this article 

My kids and I have suffered enough

especially caught my attention,

excerpts;

She reiterated that her reunification with her children has nothing to do with race or religion. It is about a mother’s love for her children, which knows no boundaries.

Well, this Loh Siew Hong case has been repeatedly reported for quite a while now.

She had alleged that her ex-husband had beaten her before taking their three children away and converted them to become Muslims.

As I understood it, her demands from the very start were not only to be reunited with her children but also for their conversion to Islam to be stopped or reversed.

Loh, backed by several DAP personalities and Hindu NGOs, won her court case on both of her demands..

She has since met with her children, who are now under the care of the Welfare Department in Perlis.

According to reports, the children seemed quite comfortable with being Muslims and Loh had not tried to forcefully take them away from the department's shelter.

Based on that, I really believe that Loh actually only care for the best of her children and as far as she was concerned, the whole issue has "nothing to do with race or religion".

I even suspect that she actually doesn't really mind that the children are now Muslims as long as they are fine and she could be with them again.

So, where did that demand for the children's conversion to be nullified came from?

The Penang mufti who from the very start of the issue has supported Loh's efforts to be reunited  with her children today said,

Let single mum have kids, but they must remain Muslims

excerpts;

The mufti was commenting on the call by Indira Gandhi Action Team’s Arun Dorasamy, who is reportedly pushing for the children’s conversion to be cancelled.

“Doing that would only muddy the good ties that the Hindus have with Muslims in the country.

“From an Islamic perspective, one’s faith in Islam cannot be reversed through a court decree, but only if that person voluntarily wants to leave Islam without any pressure from anyone,” he told FMT.

What the mufti said made me noticed that from the start of the issue, the main highlight of Loh's case has always been the unilateral conversion of her children to Islam by her ex-husband while her plight to be reunited with her children was rather relegated as a secondary issue.

At least that how the case was being reported by the media, which relentlessly pursue quotes from DAP personalities such as Penang deputy chief minister P. Ramasamy, Hindu NGO leaders, lawyers, etc.

The Islamic religious authorities, particularly the one in Perlis have been portrayed as maliciously responsible for the conversion of the children.

Basically, the issue had been turned into a case of religious prosecution against the minorities in this country.

With DAP personalities involved, I can't avoid to believe that it has also been turned into a political issue, with Ramasamy commenting on it as if he was President Modi of India.

Well, we all know how Modi's BJP Hindu-nationalist party is treating the minorities in that country, particularly the Muslims.

In this article

Perlis mufti defends conversion of children in custody battle

the mufti insisted that no one has ever been forced to convert to Islam in Perlis (or anywhere else in the country for that matter)

excerpts;

He also said that even the man’s family, who are Hindus, had came to Perlis asking for the children’s conversion to be defended by the religious authorities.

“These are Hindu people, gentlemen. We are not against Hindus, but we fight extremists who concoct untruths,” he said.

Asri stressed that no one has ever been forced to convert to Islam in Perlis and the state fatwa committee had in 2015 issued an edict, which stated that a child’s welfare takes priority over religion in custody battles involving Muslim convert and non-Muslim parents.

Doesn't that make you wonder whether we have heard the whole story on the issue?

Why did the family members of Loh's ex-husband who are Hindus asked the religious authorities to defend the children's conversion to Islam?

Journalists who were chasing after this story should really interview them to get their side of the story.

And don't forget to try get an interview with the father of the children who is currently in jail.

Yet, still I believe that Loh should be reunited with her children.

However, it must be done with the interest of the children and their mother in mind and not because certain parties want it as their political tool or instrument of religious chauvinism.