Father Lawrence Andrew could be excused for wondering whether he's been cast in a John le Carre conspiracy thriller — or a farcical dispatch from the Onion.
Police in Malaysia are investigating the Roman Catholic priest under Section 4 of the nation's Sedition Act, one that allows for the detention of anyone deemed a threat to the state. Father Lawrence's offense? He used the word "Allah" when referring to God. As bizarre as that sounds, the priest's plight reveals much about why many international executives and investors are souring on Malaysia.
Malaysia's God problem hit the headlines in October, when an appeals court banned the Catholic Church from using "Allah" to refer to God in its newspaper, the Herald — the latest wrinkle in a case dating back to 2007. Then in November, the sultan of the state of Selangor issued an edict prohibiting all non-Muslims from using the A-word. The Herald's editor, Father Lawrence, ignored the ruling and now finds himself a person of police interest.