Abim’s president Yusri Mohamad, in a media statement today, said it was important for the Government to draw up the Act as the country’s population essentially comprises people of various races, religions and cultures.

"We fully support the Act as long it is drafted based on the Federal Constitution which guarantees Islam as the official religion, the rights of the Malays and the indigenous people of Sabah and Sarawak, as well as the rights of other races, and the freedom to practise any religion," said Yusri.

"As a lot of problems are connected to religion, we hope the Act could focus on preventing religious conflicts and tackle the issue of conversion based on the Constitution.

"Although we believe it is important to responsibly guard the peace and harmony of the various races in our country, Abim hopes the Act does not deny the rights of each citizen to discuss and have positive dialogues on race relations and religions in the country," he added.

On Sept 19, the proposed Race Relations Act to strengthen ties among the different races in the country was approved by the Cabinet.

The Unity, Culture, Arts and Heritage Ministry and the Home Ministry are currently gathering data and information to draft the Act.

Both ministries would also collect input from non-Governmental organisations and individuals on the contents and scope of the Act.

The Act would include provisions on punitive action while using the Federal Constitution as the guideline and is also expected to touch on race relations through the economic, education and distribution systems.

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