Kedah Sultan calls on all communities to respect exclusive rights of Muslims

The Sultan of Kedah, Tuanku Abdul Halim Mu'adzam Shah, on Sunday, advised the people of all communities to respect the exclusive rights of Muslims to help maintain the long-established stability and harmony.

He said unity had been nurtured through a mature process and had become a force for the stability and harmony enjoyed by the people.

"As such, I urge that religious issues and racial sensitivities which have the potential to be a threat (to unity) be avoided besides adhering to the Federal Constitution and the State Constitution.

"In the context of a pluralistic society, religious sensitivities especially related to Islam as the religion of the federation should be respected," he said in his speech at the investiture in conjunction with his 86th birthday.

The text of the sultan's speech was read out by the chairman of the Kedah Council of Regency, Tan Sri Tunku Annuar Sultan Badlishah, at the investiture held at the Istana Anak Bukit, here.

The sultan said the use of the word 'Allah', which was an exclusive right of Muslims, should be respected and there should be a prohibition on its use by people of other religions.

"Confusion and controversy can be averted if there is adherence to the provisions of the law and judicial decisions," he said.

Sultan Abdul Halim advised Muslims to reject beliefs other than that of Sunnah Wal-Jamaah, for example the Syiah ideology, so as to safeguard their interests.

He said that in the context of Kedah, he was proud of the administrative efficiency of the state government in implementing concrete and conducive policies for physical and spiritual development.

He expressed confidence that the comprehensive approach to development planning incorporating various initiatives based on sustainable development would be able to transform Kedah into a prosperous, progressive and high-income state by 2020.