The government has released 35
thousand Bibles in Malay language still held at port where they were
unloaded.
It was the government itself to announce the decision, after
the controversy related to the use of the word "Allah" to mean "God."
The government had banned the use of the term Allah by Christians, in
particular the “Catholic Herald" newspaper.
The Supreme Court ruled in
favour of the Christians, but the government appealed, and in the
meantime blocked two loads of Bibles from Indonesia. (03/12/2011 Christians protest: government blocks 30 thousand Bibles in Malay).
Their release is related to a 1982 Act that allows "a limited
and controlled importation and circulation of Bibles in the Malay
language, labelled: 'Christians only'," said Idris Jala, an official of
the Department of the Prime Minister.
"This is a reasonable compromise
to handle the polarization of views between Christians and Muslims in
the country," the official added.
The government had said earlier that
the use of the word "Allah" for God by the Christian minority could
cause confusion and encourage conversion from Islam, illegal in the
predominantly Muslim country.
60% of Malaysians are Sunni Muslims (the official religion of
the country), and approximately 19% practice Buddhism, 9% are Christians
and 6% Hindus. The remainder is divided between Chinese religions and
philosophies, and traditional beliefs.