Mufti Of Perlis Stirs Up Another Hornet's Nest.

Dr. Mohd Asri Zainul Abidin, the Mufti of Perlis, seems to have stirred up another hornet's nest recently when the Perlis Fatwa Council which he chairs declared that non-Muslims converting to Islam must retain their father’s name or surname and need not have the bin or binti Abdullah.

As reported in The Star (Sunday March 11, 2007) , Dr. Asri said:-

The edict or fatwa is aimed to address the complaints by non-Muslims, who have stated that their right to retain the name of their father or surname when converting to Islam had been denied.

“When non-Muslims convert to Islam, their name is followed by `bin’ or ‘binti’ Abdullah," he said. "This should not be the case because they are actually being denied justice and their right besides affecting what had been upheld by Islam, that is nasab (descendants),"

Citing an example, he said if someone by the name of Sami son of Raju were to convert to Islam, he should retain his name as Sami bin Raju and not Sami bin Abdullah.

“Changing to ‘bin Abdullah’ is awkward and did not happen in the history of Islam. During the time of the Prophet, those converting to Islam did not change their father’s name or surname and other matters pertaining to their descendants."

Dr Asri said changing the original name and using the ‘bin’ or ‘binti’ Abdullah upon converting to Islam was merely a tradition and not compelled by Islam.

The edict has drawn mixed reactions from Malaysia's religious representatives.

In Sarawak, Assistant Minister in the Chief Minister's Office (Islamic Affairs) Datuk Daud Abdul Rahman said Non-Muslims converting to Islam should be given the freedom to retain their father's name or surname, or to opt for the `bin or binti Abdullah' (Bernama):-

The decision to retain or not should be the individual rights of each convert as Islam stressed more on the need to adhere to the religion as a way of life rather than in name only.

"It is their individual right. What is important in Islam is not just the name but also the daily obligations carried out according to Islamic teachings," he told Bernama here today.

Daud however said for Sarawak, the converts were encouraged to change to bin or binti Abdullah for identification purpose.

The Malaysian Chinese Muslim Association (Macma) Sarawak president Mortadha Lau Abdullah echoed the same sentiment saying that it was up to the individuals to decide.

"It's up to them which name they prefer or are comfortable with," he said, adding that in the case of Sarawak, converts usually would either use the name or surname in Islam followed by an alias that stated their original name before converting to Islam.

Among other reactions to the edict, The Star (Tuesday March 13, 2007) reported:-

In Ipoh, National Fatwa Committee chairman Datuk Seri Harussani Zakaria said that the national body had reached a consensus in the early 1980s for non-Muslims converting to Islam to carry the bin or binti Abdullah.

By giving the example of Riduan Teh Abdullah and Maliki Ong Abdullah, he said that provisions had been made for converts to retain their Chinese family surnames.

Harussani, however, added that it was up to Perlis to decide otherwise, as religion was a state matter.

“The Perlis Fatwa Council is making its own interpretation and it is up to it to decide on the matter,” he said yesterday.

Harussani, who is the Perak mufti, said that Islam was 1,400 years old and the use of the suffixes bin or binti Abdullah was a “very small matter.”

He said that the National Fatwa Committee had decided to standardise it by taking the common name Abdullah – meaning servant of God.

Harussani noted that the convert's original name might have a different meaning.

“For example, if a Hindu were to convert to Islam, the person’s original name may be the name of a Hindu deity,” he said.

“So, it is not acceptable to retain the name of a deity if the individual converts to Islam,” he explained.

In Penang, the state Islamic Religious Council said it was comfortable with the current practice where converts adopt the name Abdullah.

Its president Shabudin Yahaya said this helped simplify matters for the state religious administration and “avoided confusion.”

“Once the convert bears a Muslim name, his or her non-Muslim family would know without doubt that the person has embraced a new religion,” he added.

Selangor deputy mufti Datuk Abdul Majid Omar said that adopting Muslim names was “a non-issue because the National Fatwa Council had decided way back in the early 1980s that converts may retain their original family names upon conversion.”

Abdul Majid also said that bin or binti Abdullah was generally meant for illegitimate children.

What ever the overall outcome of the discussions may turn out to be, it cannot be denied that ever since Dr. Mohd Asri took up office as the Mufti of Perlis in November 2006, he has not failed to regularly bring up relevent issues for the Muslim community to talk on. Which is a great thing really in the long run for the Malaysian Muslim of this country.