KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia condemns in the strongest terms the series of terrorist attacks worldwide, such as those in Indonesia, Belgium, France, Turkey, and recently in Bangladesh.
Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak, in his Hari Raya Aidilfitri address today, said the government would continue to monitor the situation in Malaysia to prevent the spread of misleading ideologies or teachings and practices that deviate from the true meaning of Islam.
In his speech, which was broadcast live on all television stations, Najib said Malaysia is known worldwide as a competitive and progressive Islamic country.
“Based on the principle of wasatiyyah (moderation), all our actions are not too extreme or too liberal. In fact, they meet the Maqasid Syariah (five foundational goals) framework, organised by Islamic scholars.
“However, sometimes Islam is misunderstood by some, which brings about prejudice and fear to others that leads to what people term as Islamophobia.
“The fear (of Islamophobia), especially in the Western world, is the result of a misunderstanding of the true teachings of Islam.
“Sometimes we have to blame certain groups of Muslims themselves for committing negative acts which do not represent Islam, such as suicide bombers, militants and extremists.”
Najib said that as a Muslim country that is often used as a reference or role model in the region and in the global arena, Malaysia was ranked first out of 70 nations in the Global Islamic Economic Indicators 2014-2015.
He said that on the Syariah Index, launched in 2015, Malaysia had achieved an overall score exceeding 75 per cent in various fields and he believed it would increase from time to time.
On the national economy, Najib said that although Malaysia has lately faced uncertainties in the global economy, Bank Negara has disclosed that Malaysia achieved a gross domestic product (GDP) growth rate of 4.2 per cent in the first quarter of this year.
“The World Bank also expects the Malaysian economy to remain resilient, with GDP growing at 4.4 per cent this year.
“Malaysia continues to receive much recognition from many international bodies. Among others, Malaysia was ranked 18th in the Global Competitiveness Report 2015 (by the World Economic Forum).
“In the World Economic Forum Global Competitiveness Ranking 2015-2016, Malaysia ranked ninth.”
These, he said, illustrated that the Malaysian economy remains strong and is on the right track towards becoming a high-income advanced economy nation.