The three parties in the Pakatan Rakyat coalition have arrived at an initial stance on the cabinet decision that bars parents from secretly converting their children to another faith.

As each of the parties - PKR, DAP and PAS - hold a different and contradicting view on the matter, their leaders have agreed that priority should be given to resolving custody issues before taking up matters relating to religion.

syed husin ali PKR deputy president Syed Husin Ali said when contacted that issues linked to conversion need to be further studied.

Explaining that Pakatan does not necessarily have to adopt a common position on every matter, he said “we need only a minimum (stance) to hold us together”.

Those at the high-level meeting on Sunday were PKR de facto leader Anwar Ibrahim, DAP supremo Lim Kit Siang and PAS president Abdul Hadi Awang.

conversion issues posters of mohd ridzuan 270409 Last week, the cabinet decided that if a parent converts to another religion, the children should be brought up in accordance to the common religion at the time of marriage.

Its intervention came in the wake of the latest dispute, in which Muslim convert K Patmanathan (now Mohd Ridzuan Abdullah) had converted his three children to Islam on April 12 without the knowledge of his wife M Indira Gandhi (right) .

The Ipoh High Court had last week granted Indira custody of all the children, pending a full hearing on May 12.

It also ordered Mohd Ridzuan to return their daughter Prasana Diksa to Indira’s care, but he has since gone missing with the child.

The following is where the various Pakatan component parties stand in regard to the cabinet decision:

DAP: Provide legal effect for decision

Lim said the DAP is of the view that conversion of children should only be done with the consent of both parents. In the event of a dispute, the children should remain in their original religion until they reach legal age.

“Family unity and parental rights cannot be compromised,” he said yesterday in a telephone interview.

lim kit siang on conversion case 210409 03 Lim welcomed the cabinet’s decision but pressed the Barisan Nasional government to amend the federal constitution to give legal effect to its decision.

Article 12(4) of the constitution states that 'the religion of a person under the age of 18 years shall be decided by his parent or guardian'.

Some legal experts are of the opinion that ‘parent’ is understood to include the plural, to vest guardianship rights in both parents.

However Federal Court last year interpreted the word ‘parent’ in the singular, concluding that either parent could convert a child to Islam.

Lim pointed out that there is an alternative to amending the constitution, and it would involve a Federal Court review of its decision.

He, however, refused to respond when asked if Pakatan should adopt a common stand in this matter.

“Let us be clear on DAP's stand and let the issue develop,” was all he would say.

PAS: It’s unconstitutional

Publicity chief Mahfuz Omar lambasted the cabinet decision as having gone against the constitution.

mahfuz omar 01 Sin Chew Daily quoted him as saying that the decision had superseded both the constitution and the law, thereby denying the right of parents to take care of their children.

Mahfuz said there was a political agenda behind the move, to win back support from non-Muslims who had backed the opposition in recent elections.

PKR: Focus on custody rights

PKR chose the middle path that focuses on the custody of children.

The parent who is awarded custody of the children by the civil court should then have the right to convert the children, said Syed Husin.

He too described the cabinet decision as being politically motivated and as having overlooked problems that may arise.

For example, if a Hindu couple divorces because the wife converts to Islam and she gains custody of the children, they would have to be brought up as Hindus, going by the cabinet decision.

For this reason, it is necessary to determine custody rights before deciding on the children's religion.