Points put across.

There's this news article from Reuters.

I think there are a few good lines from this article, and I shall put them here.

"Today is a test of whether he is a Malay prime minister or the Malaysian prime minister," said Bridget Welsh, a Malaysia specialist at Singapore Management University.

The use of the word "Allah" to describe the Christian God is widespread in Arabic speaking countries such as Lebanon and Egypt but Malaysian Muslims say the issue is especially sensitive in a country that has large minorities and where they say Christian missionaries will use the word to convert Muslims.

How Najib handles the issues of religion and race will determine whether he is returned to power in elections that have to be held by 2013. Najib needs to win back the support of ethnic Chinese and Indians to establish himself as a credible premier.

PM, stand up and show us you can be a MALAYSIAN Prime Minister!
Are the minorities not Malaysian too?
You talk about 1Malaysia, are you going to keep 2Standards?
If you continue to give in to them, they will continue to be stubborn
and you are spoiling them by indulging in their petty demands.

Contrary to what they have claimed,
they are turning the issue into a racial issue
According to an article by The Edge,
Suhaimi Shafie, a leader of one of the protests,
even said "consider the feelings of the Malays"

the Malays? wasn't this about Islam 2 minutes ago?
can there not be non-Malay Muslims?
(In fact, he was even heard yelling "bakar gereja"
but that is another issue, and I shall not digress.)

I would like to point out that
as opposed to some of the narrow-minded Malays
(I said some. I won't generalise and say all because I know not all of them are like that)
Their Muslim counterparts, my friends,
who are from overseas such as Iraq and here in the UK
have no problems with Christians using the term Allah.

In fact, as opposed to the 100,000+ and counting Malays who have joined the FB group supporting the non-use of the term for non-Muslims,
they have joined the group that supports the use of the term Allah for all Abrahamic religions -which includes Islam, Jewism and Christianity.
Mind you, these are well-hearsed people,
who have taken the time and effort to study their own religion
and understand its teachings perfectly.
In fact, they have not only taken the time to study their own religion,
but also the effort to study others and compare their own against them.
These, are the people with real insight.

If they are worried the Christians will "convert" the Muslims
1) If your faith, i.e. Iman was strong, HOW can you be so easily swayed? If your love for your God as you so greatly proclaim is so strong, how can you easily waver just by a simple change of terms?
2) We do not "trick" people into Christianity by using the term "Allah". People who embrace Christianity, just like the non-obligatory Muslims who embrace Islam, are people who fully understand the teachings of the religion -and choose to practice them because it is their decision to do so.

Arab-speaking Christians have been using the term Allah since before Islam was founded.
Grow up, people, and look at the bigger picture.
There are more pressing issues in the country than this.
Corruption? Poverty? the crime rate, perhaps?