You Kidding Us?: Confusion

Showing posts with label Confusion. Show all posts

Thursday, 3 November 2016

Malaysia’s Islamic body orders name change on Pretzel Dogs to avoid ‘confusion’

19th October 2016 RELIGIOUS authorities in Malaysia have instructed a U.S. fast food chain to take pretzel dogs, or at least the name, off its menu to avoid confusion among Muslims in the country.

By Asian Correspondent Staff | 19th October 2016

Image via Twitter

The chain, Auntie Anne’s, has been told by Islamic authorities that its popular Pretzel Dog item – a hot dog wrapped in pretzel bread and contains no dog meat – should be renamed as it could confuse Muslim consumers.

The Malaysian Islamic Development Department has told the U.S. company to banish the word “dog” from its menu, suggesting that the product should be renamed ‘Pretzel Sausage’ as part of conditions to obtain halal certification based on Islamic dietary laws.

“It is more appropriate to use the name Pretzel Sausage,” the department’s halal director Sirajuddin Suhaimee told local media.

“Malaysia’s good name as a pioneering ‘halal global’ figure needs to be improved.”

Sirajuddin told the AFP that the recommended name change was prompted by complaints from foreign Muslim tourists.

“Any (halal) products that make consumers confused, we have to change,” he was quoted as saying. “In Islam, dogs are considered unclean and the name cannot be related to halal certification.”

The Arabic term ‘halal’ is used to describe what is permissible in the religion and this includes dietary requirements which among others forbids the consumption of pork, alcohol, or animals that were not slaughtered according to Islamic rites.

Although hot dogs have long been served by many street vendors in the country, Sirajuddin said the department would gradually conduct checks on their menus as they move to renew their two-year halal certification licenses.

Farhatul Kamilah Mohamed Sazali, an executive at Auntie Anne’s Malaysia, told the news agency that the Auntie Anne’s had no qualms about renaming the pretzel dogs.

“It’s a minor issue. We are fine with changing the name and are still working on it,” Farhatul said, as quoted by the AFP.

Auntie Anne’s has 45 outlets in Malaysia and has plans to expand in the country.

Meanwhile, the issue has become the subject of ridicule on social media.

Local news portal Free Malaysia Today conducted a quick check and found that words such as “ham”, “bacon”, “beer”, “rum” would result in Jakim’s refusal to issue halal licenses.

The site also reported that many outlets in the country served beef bacon or turkey ham.

The ruling had forced renowned fast-food restaurant chain A&W to rebrand its popular “Coney Dog” and “Root Beer” products to “Chicken Coney” or “Beef Coney” and “RB” respectively.

“We had to change the names if we wanted to be eligible to apply for the halal certificate,” A&W Quality Control and Halal Assurance Assistant Manager Shahidah Wahid was quoted as saying, adding that the changes were made two years ago.

Additional reporting from the Associated Press

https://asiancorrespondent.com/2016/10/malaysia-islamic-body-orders-change-pretzel-dog/

Wednesday, 2 November 2016

Silly, stupid? No, something sinister in Malaysia’s pretzel dog brouhaha

IT WOULD be so easy to mock Malaysia’s Islamic authorities for withholding a halal certification over the usage of the word dog in ...

By Jahabar Sadiq | 20th October 2016

In this Tuesday, Oct. 18, 2016 photo, Pretzel Dogs are on display at
Auntie Anne's at a shopping mall in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Pic: AP.

IT WOULD be so easy to mock Malaysia’s Islamic authorities for withholding a halal certification over the usage of the word dog in a food item, ostensibly due to possible confusion among Muslim consumers.

And that is what most Malaysians have done over social media in response to the Malaysian Islamic Development Department’s (Jakim) recommendation to pretzel franchise Auntie Anne’s to rename its “Pretzel Dog” to “Pretzel Sausage” to get a halal certification.

It goes for other fast food franchises such as A&W with their iconic A&W Root Beer (which was renamed in 2009) or Coney Dog (which has also been renamed), and for that matter, food items such as beef bacon or turkey ham.

Imagine the confusion among Muslims, one would say in mock anger.

As did a few religious and consumer activists who cited confusion and the need to be aware of sensitivities among Muslims when it comes to naming food items. Again, these people are reinforcing the view that Muslim are stupid and easily confused, or in other words – sheep.

The popular perception of silliness and stupidity on the part of Malaysian religious authorities masks something else – that these men who licence what is permissible and what isn’t for the community, have far wider influence and powers than we think possible.

Jakim’s halal certification does two things.

One, it allows businesses to expand and sell to the Muslims, who number more than half of Malaysia’s 30 million population.

Essentially, Jakim becomes the gatekeeper to the Muslim community and those who want to trade there need their nod, and have to comply with their rules.

Two, Muslims who patronise businesses without halal certification will be seen as lesser and perhaps not even Muslim among the community. You either conform or you are cast out as an infidel.

In short, Jakim has become the arbiters of morals, piety and business in Malaysia. And if you don’t play by their rules, you are excluded from doing business with Muslims because the vast majority of Muslims are brought up to respect, obey and trust whatever Jakim says.

And, other ventures will come up to cater to the Muslims, selling essentially the same items as Auntie Anne’s or A&W such as the rip-off Coca Cola called Mecca Cola a while ago.

Image via YouTube.

It might not be the same but it is akin to beef bacon or turkey ham.

Which ironically, cannot be called such anymore.

There is nothing silly or stupid in what Jakim does, even if it attracts mockery and contempt about broad-minded Muslims who know better than to believe anything named dog or beer isn’t halal.

The halal certificate isn’t for the broad-minded, but it is for those who don’t know any better except to trust the certificate.

So, in letting businesses to trade by its rules and regulations, Jakim is doing what it does best – developing Islam as the only source of laws to live by in Malaysia, and make it an Islamic state as Dr Mahathir Mohamad once said in 2001.

It is sinister, to say the least, because the halal certification has gone beyond the standard of hygienic production to being a tool of dominance and oppression. But it works because it boils down to dollars and cents for Auntie Anne’s 45 outlets and other fast-food franchises going for the bigger Muslim community market.

The only losers are Malaysians – because Jakim has become the gatekeepers of freedom of expression and public morality in what we consume and do in our daily lives – be it Muslims or those of other faiths.

But, we can fight back in a simple way.

Keep asking for hot dogs, root beers and disregard the lack of halal certification. Their powers evaporate when people and businesses ignore them.

Image via Twitter

** This is the personal opinion of the writer and does not reflect the views of Asian Correspondent

https://asiancorrespondent.com/2016/10/silly-stupid-no-something-sinister-malaysias-pretzel-dog-brouhaha/

Islam in Malaysia: When religion infiltrates the government

WHAT is the role of a religious authority like the Department of Islamic Development Malaysia (Jakim) in the country? How much influence does it ...

By Zan Azlee | 24th October 2016

A Malaysian Muslim man walks towards a mosque for noon prayers in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Pic: AP

WHAT is the role of a religious authority like the Department of Islamic Development Malaysia (Jakim) in the country? How much influence does it wield in Malaysia’s governmental and administrative affairs?

It may seem like the people in Jakim are just old wise men with long beards and a magical staffs who advise the ruler of the country – much like the magician Jaafar did in the Disney movie Aladdin.

Source: Wikipedia.

In the case of Jaafar, he makes colourful potions and smoke screens to impress the king, using his powers to hide his sinister plans before going on to usurp the ruler’s power.

This analogy struck me when I was watching the 2017 National Budget presentation by the Prime Minister Najib Razak last Friday in Parliament.

Najib made everyone aware that he had referred to the Islamic authorities for advice on the best and, I’m assuming, the most blessed way to allocate and spend the nation’s money.

In fact, Jakim was even allocated RM1 billion (US$240 million) for the coming year. What will they be using that money for? No one really knows for sure.

The Islamic department has been busy making sure than society is free from evil and non-Islamic influence that they believe would lead Muslims astray.

The most recent was the haram declaration of the ‘Pretzel Dog’. Dogs are filthy in Islam and hence a food item named like that would be, well, filthy, according to the department. Even if the meat was beef or chicken.

Following that logic, hot dogs, root beer, beef bacon, turkey ham and the like would all be considered haram, even if the ingredients used are clean and the meat slaughtered according to Muslim rituals.

Aunty Anne’s famous ‘pretzel dogs’. Source: Aunty Anne’s.

In fact, there are so many other traditional Malay dishes that would be considered haram, just from the name of the dishes alone. It would just cause too much confusion.

But Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department in charge of religious affairs Jamil Khir Baharom clarified everything by saying there won’t be a ban on the name ‘Pretzel Dog’.

This is despite the fact that under the halal certification guidelines by Jakim, it does say that a name of a dish can be deemed unclean.

Yes, ridiculous as it is, Jakim has that guideline.

Aside from being vigilant to food names, Jakim has also spent a lot of time doing other things that protect the sanctity of Islam and the purity of Malaysian Muslims.

Another one of their operations is the regular review and banning of books that they deem are against the teaching of the brand of Islam that they approve of.

SEE ALSO: Malaysia bans Ultraman book over use of ‘Allah’

One can just do a Google search for the official list of books that gets banned annually. It is as long as the hard copy of Najib’s national budget speech.

Jakim has also restricted the use of the word ‘Allah’ to only Muslims.

Apparently, the Arabic word for ‘God’ cannot be used by people other than Malays and Muslims.

Their reason is that Malays can easily be confused if they heard people of another religion using the word. This can lead them astray and they will became apostates without even knowing so.

SEE ALSO: Malaysia’s top court rejects church’s appeal on ‘Allah’ ban

Don’t get me wrong. I do not object to having bodies and agencies that work towards protecting their chosen religion. It is a basic human right to have freedom of religion.

What I am against is the fact that this one particular religion has been incorporated into a governmental system that is supposed to be secular and represent everyone regardless of faith.

It has infiltrated it so much that for many Malaysians, expressing any opinion that is just slightly against their accepted interpretation of Islam means that you are an infidel.

They are the be all and end all when it comes to religious knowledge and interpretation. Nobody should question their actions and motives – if you do, you’ll be accused of going against Islam.

For a multi-racial and multi-religious society that is far from homogenous like Malaysia, it is unhealthy and plain wrong when one religious group is allowed to impose their authority on all.