Too much of a good thing

Venting their anger: Jones' threat to burn the Quran has resulted in worldwide condemnation against him.

If we adopt a free for all, which includes the right to indulge in hate speech or a right to foment and incite hatred and violence, our beloved country will be torn apart in no time.

MANY of us have heard of the infamous Pastor Terry Jones – the bewhiskered preacher from the diminutive Dove World Outreach Centre in Gainesville, Florida, in the United States who had threatened to hold “Inter­national Burn A Quran Day” on Sept 11. He subsequently backed down after worldwide condemnation against him.

This included our Foreign Affairs Minister Datuk Anifah Aman, who called the act of burning the holy book of Muslims a “heinous crime”.

US President Barack Obama warned that this could increase the recruitment of individuals who would be willing to blow themselves up in American or European cities, adding that it would be a recruitment bonanza for al-Qaeda.

As a Christian, I am ashamed by what Jones tried to do, especially when it came from a man of God.

But why were the US authorities, including the President, powerless to stop him from carrying out his threat?

The answer lies in Jones’ right to freedom of speech enshrined in the First Amendment to the US Constitu­tion.

The First Amendment is part of the United States Bill of Rights which contains the first 10 sacrosanct amendments to the United States Constitution.

CJ to meet Johor, Penang Bars

The Sunday Star

by Shaila Koshy

KUALA LUMPUR: Chief Justice Tun Zaki Azmi will meet representatives of the Johor and Penang Bars over their complaints on judicial measures to clear the backlog of cases and improve the administration of justice.

“I will meet the Johor Bar on Thursday. I received a letter from the Penang Bar requesting for a meeting and am in the process of fixing a date,” Zaki told The Star yesterday.

Keep an open mind over no-confidence motion, Johor Bar told

The Star

by Nelson Benjamin

JOHOR BARU: The Malaysian Bar Council feels that the Johor Bar Committee should keep an open mind to allow discussion by members on taking a no-confidence motion against its chairman.

Council chairman Ragunath Kesavan said it was not the first time that such a motion was brought up, adding that even in the council such a motion was allowed in the past.