KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 17 — A group of NGOs today urged all stakeholders to start an honest discourse on the Federal Constitution and the direction in which Malaysia is headed, following the call by 25 Malay personalities for greater consultation in the interpretation of the law of the land.

The group, comprising 93 organisations, said civil society must speak up and respond to “extremists” bent on taking advantage of “sensitive yet critical issues” for their own ends.

Pertubuhan Ikram Malaysia vice-president Zaid Kamaruddin said the ongoing debate is being monopolised by groups like Perkasa and Ikatan Muslimin Malaysia (Isma), who only harp on certain parts of the Federal Constitution without looking at the apex law in its entirety.

“The problem is there is no engagement. Let’s come back to the original document (Federal Constitution), not be selective and build a narrative that is not adversarial,” he said at a news conference attended by representatives from 23 of the 93 NGOs.

Jihad for Justice chairman Datuk Tasleem Mohamed Ibrahim said more attention needs to be given to “moderate” voices, especially among young Malays who he claims are largely against extremism.

“Of all the young Malays I meet, I can say that at least 90 per cent do not subscribe to what Perkasa or Isma say,” he said.

Other NGOs and civil society groups that endorsed the position of the 25 include the All Women’s Action Society (Awam), Islamic Renaissance Front, the Malaysian Consultative Council for Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism, Sikhism and Taoism (MCCBCHST), Sisters in Islam (SIS), Suara Rakyat Malaysia (Suaram) and the Women’s Aid Organisation.

In an open letter posted on Malay Mail Online’s website last week, 25 Malays, consisting of mostly former top civil servants stressed that any law enacted, including Islamic laws, cannot violate the Federal Constitution, especially its provisions on fundamental liberties, federal-state division of powers and legislative procedures.

The group also highlighted the lack of public awareness on the legal jurisdiction and limits of the religious authorities’ powers and administration of Islamic laws in Malaysia, insisting that all Acts, Enactments, and even fatwa (religious edicts) are bound by the Federal Constitution and are open to judicial review.

The group listed down five pressing issues to be dealt with by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak, the first being the areas of conflict and overlap between civil and Shariah laws, insisting that the laws on Shariah Criminal Offences must especially be reviewed after a Cabinet directive in 1999 to do so was ignored.

But Perkasa, a strong Malay-Muslim rights advocate that has often warned against liberalism and pluralism creeping into Malaysia’s brand of Islam, insisted that the voices of the 25 individuals may not represent the majority of Malays here.