KUALA LUMPUR: Any national discourse on minority rights should not exclude Muslim minority sects, Islamic Renaissance Front founder Dr Farouk Musa said on Saturday.

Speaking at a forum on civil society organised by civil society coalition Gabungan Bertindak Malaysia (GBM), Farouk said that Muslim minority sects such as the Shi’ites should have their rights protected just like non-Muslim religious groups.

He said the original ideals of the constitution, which are intended for Malaysia to be a country that practises secularism, have been “perverted” over time.

“The original ideals have been perverted for political mileage,” he said.

He also took aim at the Pakatan Rakyat leadership, whom he said did not include Muslim minorities in its conversation about minority rights.

“The Pakatan leadership must demonstrate that it upholds the constitutional rights of the minorities, otherwise there is not much difference between Umno’s narrow ethnocentric interest and Pakatan’s. You cannot just talk about minorities from other religions, you must talk about Muslim minorities as well,” he added.

He also warned of extremism on “both sides”, including Umno and PAS. — The Malaysian Insider

This article first appeared in The Edge Financial Daily, on May 11, 2015.