BANGI, Nov 16 — Controversial Muslim group ISMA continued today to insist that Datin Paduka Marina Mahathir supports the ideas propagated by Comango, a coalition of rights groups accused of being “anti-Islam” for backing lesbians, bisexuals gays and transgender (LBGT) rights despite her denial.

Its deputy president Aminuddin Yahaya  argued that her link with one of the group's member NGO Sisters in Islam (SIS) meant the daughter of influential former prime minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad “directly or indirectly” endorses Comango's agenda.

“We all know that SIS is in Comango and she is with SIS. So directly or indirectly she is involved,” he said in a press conference held at the group's office here.

Marina had last week threatened legal action after ISMA distributed leaflets featured pictures of Marina and several others, linking them to Comango.

In the leaflet, ISMA slammed the coalition for calling for the freedom to renounce Islam; the protection of LGBT rights; the removal of Malay privileges; the freedom to embrace Syiah teachings; and the right for Catholics to refer to God as “Allah”, among others.

But despite the legal threat, ISMA continued to distribute the leaflets. Just yesterday, 10,000 of the papers were handed out after Friday prayers in the state capital Johor Baru and other districts there such as Skudai, Pontian, Kota Tinggi and Batu Pahat.

Its website claimed as many as 80,000 had been distributed so far.

Today, it announced a plan to launch a nationwide campaign against Comango.

The campaign, dubbed “Kempen Selamatkan Umat” or Save the People Campaign, will feature forums on “the threat of liberalism to Islam” and alleged Christian threat to “Malay survival”.

Marina has described ISMA’s allegation that she was one of the masterminds behind Comango as “wholly untrue”.

“Although I am a Board member of Sisters in Islam, one of the NGOs in the coalition, I was not involved in any way in the Comango process.

But Aminuddin insisted that Marina had lied, saying that it would be illogical for a leader in an organisation to be unaware of the outfit's policies or direction.

“As a leader in any organisation, it is illogical for you not to be aware of what's going on. Of course she would not know the details..but in the decision-making, she would be aware of what's happening,” he said.

ISMA has been at the forefront of attempts to discredit Comango, which has also come under fire from other Muslim activists here who claim the group’s human rights recommendations to the United Nations ran counter to the “true” teachings of Islam and the sovereignty of the Federal Constitution.

ISMA, which has since signed on with a coalition of Muslim NGOs called MuslimUPRo, also accused Comango of attempting to spread “liberalism teachings” backed by Western powers.

Comango countered that their report was merely an effort to encourage Malaysia to prove its commitment towards improving the lot of all Malaysians via the Universal Periodic Review (UPR).