Source: International Herald Tribune
Wire Service: AP
http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2008/02/04/asia/AS-GEN-Malaysia-Religious-Rights.php
A church federation slammed Malaysian customs officials Monday for seizing 32 Bibles, saying the confiscation shows the Muslim-majority country is becoming less tolerant of other religions.
The Royal Malaysian Customs department said it was only trying to determine if the Bibles were imported for commercial purposes.
Custom officials at an airport in Kuala Lumpur took the Bibles from a Malaysian woman Jan. 28 on her return from the Philippines, said the Rev. Hermen Shastri, general secretary of the Council of Churches of Malaysia.
The woman was told that all religious materials have to be sent to the Internal Security Ministry's publications control unit for clearance, Shastri said, adding that he had never before heard of anyone being told to do this when bringing English-language Bibles into the country.