Source: The International Herald Tribune
Wire Service: AP
http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2008/04/29/asia/AS-GEN-Malaysia-Islam.php
Islamic authorities have rejected a proposal by Malaysia's prime minister that would require non-Muslims to inform their families before converting to Islam.
The decision was made at a weekend meeting of top Islamic authorities, including legal and spiritual advisers, the Malaysian Islamic Development Department's director-general, Wan Mohamad Sheikh Abdul Aziz, said in a statement received Tuesday.
The department's rejection was a setback for the proposal, which minority religious groups had hoped would alleviate interfaith tensions in the Muslim-majority nation.
The department's approval is needed to implement any rule relating to Islam. But the government can still get Parliament to pass a law which would override the department's objections.