YOURSAY 'Hopefully, this is due to a few teachers who have betrayed the trust given to them by the parents to teach their children.'

'Orang Asli children slapped for not reciting doa'

Timothy: It is a well-known secret agenda that the authorities want to convert as many Orang Asli and natives in Sabah and Sarawak into Muslims.

Many don't even know they have converted until they were shown some documents. Just go to the ground and talk to them. This are just a tip of an iceberg.

It is similar in so-called national schools. I witnessed it myself. My children (non-Muslims) have to stand in the open field to endure the doa (Islamic prayer) reading by the ustaz and face regular onslaught from the ustaz questioning their faith at this young age.

Is that a national school or an agama (religious) school?

Sabahan: Hopefully, this is due to a few teachers who have betrayed the trust given to them by the Orang Asli parents to teach their children.

Years ago, my neighbour's daughter, a non-Muslim bumiputera, was given a place in a Mara Junior Science Colleges (MRSM) school in Peninsular Malaysia.

During the fasting month, the school has to provide meals for her and a few East Malaysian non-Muslim bumiputeras during the day. Very soon, they were urged by a Muslim teacher to become Muslims as so not to trouble the kitchen staff during the fasting hours.

My neighbour quickly removed his daughter from the school. Like I said earlier, these are the actions of a few misguided teachers.

Lawan Tetap Lawan: If it was the other way around, there would be street protests aided by the police and MPs calling for the sacking of the teacher.

Lamborghini: The Orang Asli has been bullied and intimidated and suppressed for far too long. They are the true native inhabitants, the real bumiputeras of this land and yet they are treated as the lowest and least of our citizens.

Because of their ignorance and meekness, their rights have been trampled upon and their lands robbed from them and now their children being forced to convert to a faith not of their choosing.

To all of you who are bullying, intimidating and taking advantage of the Orang Asli, stop it for God's sake.

We should all instead do our very best to genuinely help them to develop to become more educated, healthy and respected citizens in our country.

These true bumiputeras deserve and need our genuine help, compassion and support, not our greed and evil intentions and wicked actions.

The teacher concerned and others like him must be brought to justice for their contemptible actions against the innocent Orang Asli children.

P Dev Anand Pillai: It will soon happen in other rural areas if we don't fight back. Their next targets will be the Indians, who are now ranked behind the Indonesian Muslims as the fourth or fifth in terms of population.

They will never touch the well-connected ones, their target will be the rural ones. So let's change the bargaining position by ensuring that there are at least two representatives from Hindraf and Parti Sosialis Malaysia (PSM) in Parliament this time around.

2zzzxxx: Imagine if they were Muslim children and slapped for not reciting a non-Muslim prayer.

Jati president Hasan Ali and Perkasa president Ibrahim Ali and all of Umno will by now have descended on the streets and screaming to have the teacher hung.

Chipmunk: This is why all Malays should be taught about respecting other religions. They must know that freedom of religion is part of the constitution.

Most SK (sekolah kebangsaan) and SMK (sekolah menengah kebangsaan) schools try to force non-Muslims to recite the doa and this is utterly wrong.

Will the education minister and the prime minister take action on this matter or just turn a deaf ear to this? How would you feel if non-Malays forced their religion onto Muslims? Will you like that?

So please, for the sake of racial integration, stop this kampung attitude and wake up to reality.

3rdEye: Stop the rot now. Malaysians must be free to choose and Malaysian parents be allowed to decide what is needed for their children.

The teacher, Education Ministry and Orang Asli Development Department (JHEOA) must take responsibility, apologise and ensure this does not repeat, both in East and West Malaysia.

Geronimo: Now you can understand why the Chinese educationalists are resisting the posting of Malay teachers to Chinese schools.

Clearly, there is a bigger agenda here then meets the eye. When PM Najib Abdul Razak studied in St John's Institution, I wonder whether the LaSalle brothers forced him to say grace before he eats.

Swipenter: If nothing is done to stop such incidents and proper disciplinary action taken against the offender, one day you would be slapped for not looking like them.

Hopeful Doc: If the Muslims dislike being proselytised, why are they doing the same to others? Transferring misbehaving government servants will not solve any problem. They must be suspended and demoted. This is to ensure they will think twice before doing anything.

Anonymous #18452573: Bigotry is the by-product of racism. This is just another form of ethnocentrism and xenophobia due to BN's 50 years of racially divided political parties and racist policies.

Islam, Christianity and other religions are inherently good and encourage unity against evil. It is people who are brought up with bad policies and divisive politics who are capable of doing bad, regardless of the religion they profess.

BujangSenang: "Any man or woman who neglects to maintain inward vigilance, and only makes an outward show of holiness in dress, speech, and behaviour, is a wretched creature.

"For they watch the doings of other people and criticise their faults, imagining themselves to be something when in reality they are nothing.

"In this way they deceive themselves. Be careful to avoid this, and devote yourself inwardly to His likeness by humility, charity, and other spiritual virtues. In this way you will be truly converted to God." - Walter Hilton.

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