one god many people different beliefs divided views

KUALA LUMPUR: 'Allah', which is Arabic for God, is not the only word prohibited for use in a non-Muslim context.

In the case of the Catholic newspaper Herald, it is barred from using three other words: Kaabah (Islam's holiest shrine in Mecca), Solat (prayer) and Baitullah (House of God).

Father Lawrence Andrew, the weekly paper's editor, told The Straits Times yesterday that the four words were listed in the guidelines issued to the Herald in 2007. The Cabinet decided on the prohibited words in 1986.

The Herald does not use the three latter words, but ran into problems with the Home Ministry for using 'Allah' to refer to the Christian God in its Malay-language publications.

Last month, the High Court set aside the government ban on the use of 'Allah' by non-Muslims. The court decision outraged many Muslims and was followed by a series of arson attacks on churches.

The ban is not limited to those four words. Malaysian states have enactments listing more Arabic or Malay words as exclusive to Islam.

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