January 19, 2008	Saturday	Muharram 09, 1429

KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 18: A Malaysian court on Friday ordered a Christian woman’s body be returned to her family after Islamic officials admitted they were wrong in claiming she had converted to Islam.

Wong Sau Lan died on Dec 30, but since then her remains have been kept at a hospital because of the dispute — the latest in a series of religious tussles that have raised tensions in the multicultural country.

“It clearly shows over-enthusiasm of the official from the Islamic Religious Council. They admitted that it was a mistake,” said Karpal Singh, a lawyer for Wong’s family.

“This victory is very significant as there is growing fear among minorities over their religious rights, which seem to be being eroded,” he added.

Karpal said Islamic officials had earlier told the court that Wong, who was 53 when she died, had converted to Islam on Dec 24. He said it was not clear why they retracted their claim.Wong’s husband, Ngiam Tee Kong, said his wife had sought the help of a Muslim “bomoh” or traditional healer in December — a common practice among Malaysians.

“My wife was made to recite some Koranic verses. When she died, the witch-doctor showed the video clip of my wife reciting to the Islamic officials, who then issued a letter saying my wife was a Muslim,” he said.

“But my wife does not have a Muslim name. She had never converted to Islam,” he added.

Karpal said Wong’s body would be cremated on Wednesday in a Christian ceremony and that her family would take legal action against the religious authorities.

“The trauma suffered by the family has to be taken into account. It is negligence on the part of the Islamic officials. So we will proceed with the suit,” he said.

About 60 per cent of Malaysia’s 27 million people are ethnic Malay Muslims.—AFP