The Constitution of Malaysia establishes a right to freedom of religion in Article 11. However, Islam is also established as the state religion of the country in article 3, and article 11 provides for legal restrictions on proselytizing to Muslims.Article 11 (4): 'State law and in respect of the Federal Territories of Kuala Lumpur, Labuan and Putrajaya, federal law may control or restrict the propagation of any religious doctrine or belief among persons professing the religion of Islam.' According to Freedom House, the country was scored 1 out of 4 for freedom of religion, with 0 being the worst and 4 being the best, in 2023.
Muslims themselves are subject to state enforcement of religious observance, where the government can issue fines or legal penalties for failing to perform praying and fasting, or engaging in premarital sex. In addition, ethnic Malays are legally mandated that they must be a Muslim and are strictly prohibited from converting to other faiths. A Muslim must also be a Sunni, with being a Shia officially banned and unrecognised. While other religious communities represent a significant portion of the population, those who identify with atheist, agnostic, or other irreligious life stances are rare, as open hostility and state-sanctioned pressure make such positions difficult.
Religious demography As of the 2020 Population and Housing Census, 63.5% of the population practices Islam; 18.7% Buddhism; 9.1% Christianity; 6.1% Hinduism; and 2.7% other or no religion. Other faiths include Animism, Folk religion, Sikhism and Baháʼí Faith.
However, these figures may be misleading as professing the religion of Islam is a requirement for being a Malay in the sense of the Malaysian Constitution.Constitution of Malaysia on Wikisource Moreover, Muslims who wish to leave Islam face strong disincentives.
Scope of Islamic law in Malaysia
The nation maintains two parallel justice systems in the country (see: Courts of Malaysia). One is the secular justice system based upon laws gazetted by Parliament. The other is sharia (syariah, Islamic law). Ostensibly Syariah Courts only have jurisdiction over persons who declare themselves to be Muslims. Consequently, this results in non-Muslims not having legal standing in Syariah Courts.
Non-Muslims can seek recourse from a Syariah court decision in the secular courts, which could overrule the Syariah courts. Syariah courts are limited in their jurisdiction by Article 121 of the Federal constitution. In 2006 a judge ruled that Article 121 limited the federal courts from ruling on matters ruled on by the Syariah court when it touches Islamic matters. This was seen as a misinterpretation of the article by some, and the case is under appeal in the court of appeals.
The rules of sharia are set by the various sultans of the states. Historically a sultan had absolute authority over the state. Prior to independence, Tunku Abdul Rahman managed to convince the sultans to cede some states' powers to the federal government. One of the terms of this agreement is that the sultans still are the ultimate authority of Islamic law in their respective states. The same arrangement was long held even during British colonial rule. In Selangor, the Selangor Non-Islamic Religions (Control of Propagation Among Muslims) Enactment 1988 was signed by the Sultan of Selangor into law forbidding non-Muslims from using the word "Allah" in a public context. Lawmakers have claimed that this enactment is contrary to the federal constitution.
Constitutionally (in Article 160 of the Constitution of Malaysia), one of the four tests for entitlement to the privileges accorded to a Malaysian Malay is that one must be a Muslim. The rationale for this is that Islam is considered intrinsic to Malay ethnic identity, which culturally and historically is ruled by a Sultan who is a Muslim. Another test is that one must follow the Malay culture. Controversially, court rulings have assumed that all ethnic Malays must automatically satisfy this constitutional definition of a Malaysian Malay, and have therefore concluded that they must satisfy all of its requirements, so they have to be Muslim.
On 29 September 2001, the then Prime Minister, Mahathir Mohamad declared that the country was an Islamic state (negara Islam). The opposition leader at the time, Lim Kit Siang, is now actively seeking support to declare Mahathir's move as unconstitutional by repeatedly clarifying that Malaysia is a secular state with Islam as its official religion as enshrined in the Constitution. However, the coalition government headed by Mahathir at the time held more than two-thirds of the seats in parliament. A two-thirds majority vote in Parliament is required for constitutional amendments in Malaysia.
Status of religious freedom
Government in general supports Islamic religious establishment and it is the official policy to "infuse Islamic values" into the administration of the country.
However, Sunday which is the Christian traditional holiday is the official weekend holiday in the Federal Territories and ten out of thirteen states, unlike practices in Middle Eastern Muslim countries. The exception are the states of Johor, Kedah, Kelantan and Terengganu, where the weekend falls on Friday and Saturday. Although on 29 December 2024, Johor reverted back to Saturday and Sunday weekend holiday that would be started on 1 January 2025. Most Muslims in Malaysia accept this, although some have expressed disquiet since the most holy period in a Muslim's week is between Thursday evening and Friday afternoon, when the congregational Jumaat prayer is held. The practice of having Sunday as the weekend holiday is a departure from traditional Islamic practices, dating to British colonial days when the British started bringing in non-Muslim immigrants into the country.
In May 2001, the government decided not to approve the Falun Gong Preparatory Committee's application to register as a legal organisation. This action is believed to be more related to the government's wish to improve relations with China rather than an attempt to undermine the Falun Gong in favour of Islam. The government has not prevented Falun Gong members from carrying out their activities in public.
For Muslim children, religious education according to a government-approved curriculum is compulsory in public schools. There are no restrictions on homeschooling, although primary school is compulsory. However, private schools and colleges do have some legal requirements.
Several religious holidays are recognised as official holidays, including Hari Raya Puasa (Muslim), Hari Raya Haji (Muslim), the Milad un Nabi (Muslim), Wesak Day (Buddhist), Deepavali (Hindu), Thaipusam (Hindu), Christmas (Christian), and, in Sabah and Sarawak, Good Friday (Christian).
Judaism is not a recognized religion in Malaysia, and movements within the religion which incorporate political Zionism and even non-Zionist Jewish movements such as classical Judaism that are rooted in nationhood are either hindered or outrightly criminalized. In 2017 a Christian Zionist event called Jerusalem's Jubilee was canceled by the authorities. One of the reasons cited by the Federal Police was that "celebrating Israel’s occupation of Palestine offended Malaysians." Besides that, the organizers of the event were regarded as being insensitive because they used Jewish symbols such as the menorah and the Hebrew word Shalom and thus were also perceived as promoting Jewish culture. Such insensitivity, which may not necessarily be Zionistic, can be seen as seditious and thus have legal ramifications. Individuals who express support for the state of Israel openly can be prosecuted under Section 4(1)(a) of the Sedition Act. Arrest and investigations have been made in the past. The sedition law prescribes a maximum fine of RM5,000 or a jail sentence of three years for a convicted first-time offender, or both, and raises the jail term to five years for subsequent offenses. Jewish prayer items such as a Torah scroll delivered into the country may be confiscated by customs [if it was made known to them that its purpose was for the observance of Judaism]; thus (in reality) the practice of Judaism be it Zionist or not is hindered by the government.
In an interview with Al-Jazeera in 2016 Tun Dr Mahathir Muhamad (4th & 7th Prime Minister) conflated all Jews with the State of Israel and reaffirmed his statement that Jews rule the world by proxy and that they get others to die and fight for them. In a sermon prepared by the Federal Territory Islamic Affairs Department (JAWI) in 2012 it was stated that Jews are to be regarded as the main enemy of Muslims in the context of the Israeli occupation of Palestine. In 1984, the New York Philharmonic Orchestra had to cancel its visit to Malaysia after the Malaysian Information Minister demanded that a composition by American-Jewish composer Ernest Bloch, be eliminated from their program. Or Avi-Guy, a political analyst from AIJAC in an opinion piece commented that "That incident had nothing to do with the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, only a disturbing rejection of all things Jewish."
Inter-faith efforts in Malaysia
In April 2002, the Human Rights Commission (Suhakam) initiated an interfaith dialogue aimed at promoting better understanding and respect among the country's different religious groups. Participants included representatives from the Malaysian Islamic Development Department, the Malaysian Ulama Association, and the Malaysian Consultative Council of Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism, Sikhism and Taoism (MCCBCHST).
In early 2005, much debate was stirred up by a proposed Inter-Faith Commission put forward by various individuals, some of which included academics and lawyers from the Bar Council.
The steering committee behind the proposal for a draft bill for the commission organised a national conference that saw about 200+ people from all religious backgrounds attending it. There they hashed out the framework for a commission that could advise the relevant parties on the many interfaith issues that arise in pluralistic Malaysia such as conversion from Islam to another faith, which is deemed as apostasy in Malaysia.
PAS, member of parliament Dzulkefly Ahmad, stated that he is against religious pluralism saying that it has "relativised" truth claims, by implying that Islam is the same as other religions. Dr. Ahmad went on to make a distinction between promoting relativism of religions and co-operation with people in a "multi-racial, multi-religious, multi-cultural, and multi-lingual" society, and that the latter was necessary to build a strong country.
After much coverage in the local newspapers, the draft bill was put on hold by Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, due to the controversy surrounding it.
Conversion to Islam
Marriage and divorce A non-Muslim person who wishes to marry a Muslim person must convert to Islam before the marriage can be recognised as legally valid.Marriage Procedures Between Muslim and Non-Muslim , Malaysia Government Official Portal. Accessed 23 September 2007.Marriage in Malaysia , British High Commission, Kuala Lumpur. Accessed 23 September 2007 A marriage between two non-Muslims (civil law marriages), however, will not become void after one spouse subsequently converts to Islam.