FAC News - Monday, February 18, 2002 12:08 AM

The Shaykh Kabbani saga continues – legal action being considered

Last night, the Malaysian government said it will reveal “when the time was right” who the ex-Malaysian Minister implicated by Shaykh Muhammad Hisham Kabbani is.

The government also said it will be sending someone to the US to meet Kabbani to obtain his statement and confirmation on the name of this ex-Minister.

On Wednesday last week, Kabbani, Chairman of the Islamic Supreme Council of America (ISCA), went before a Malaysian television station and said that an ex-Malaysian Minister had given 38 million Ringgit to extremist Islamic groups in the US.

He did not, however, identify the said ex-Minister or the US Islamic organisations he meant though speculation has it that the ex-Minister he meant is Anwar Ibrahim and the Islamic organisation is the Islamic Society of North America (ISNA). It is well-known that Kabbani has a decade-long feud with ISNA which has declared him persona non grata and in turn boycotts all ISCA functions.

This speculation was confirmed when, on Friday last week, Kabbani told the Malaysian press that he did not mean ISNA and had never mentioned ISNA by name.

At a time when Islamic groups, especially US-based ones, are trying to clean up its “extremist” image after the September 11 tragedy, Kabbani’s “revelation” does not help matters much. Kabbani just "confirms" Muslims in general are extremists.

“It is good if Malaysia sends someone to talk to Kabbani on US soil,” said a US lawyer who FAC News spoke to. “If he says it in Malaysia then there is nothing much we can do. I don’t think we are prepared to sue him in a Malaysian court for very obvious reasons. But, if he says it on US soil, then we have enough grounds to sue him in a US court.”

“We hope he will mention the US ‘extremist’ Islamic organisation by name,” added the lawyer. “However, knowing Kabbani from his past track record, he will just make sweeping statements without identifying anyone by name. This is his style.”

“Even if he doesn’t name the organisation but does mention the ex-Minister by name, and that this person had given money to US extremist organisations, then that ex-Minister can also take Kabbani to court. Either way, Kabbani can be sued in a US court.”

Kabbani may have stepped into a minefield this time. If he mentions names, he is screwed. If he does not, his credibility goes out the window. As a da’i (preacher), it is his Islamic duty to practice Amar Ma’aruf, Nahi Munkar (invite to do good and prevent evil) – and financing extremist Islamic organisations that kill innocent women and children can be regarded as evil.

It is Kabbani’s duty, therefore, to reveal the truth and prevent this evil from continuing. If he does not dare do this for fear of being dragged to court, then his iman (faith) will now be in question. What kind of da’i would he be then?