MALAYSIA Negeri Sembilan. Police arrested members of Millah Abraham, a “heretical” Islamic sect

The sect was declared “deviant” by Islamic religious authorities in 2019 and is alleged to be operating underground across the country. It believes in the existence of a new prophet, recites an alternative shahādah and attempts to merge Islam, Judaism and Christianity into a single religion. Laptops and cell phones were seized during the arrests.

Kuala Lumpur () – A 50-year-old Muslim man, Norasid Said, was sentenced to one month in prison and fined 2,000 Malaysian ringgits (just under 400 euros) for having taught his wife deviant religious teachings related to the Millah Abraham cult. A couple and their 16-year-old son were arrested for the same reason and are under investigation.

The judge said Ruzita Ramli Norasid, a street musician, confessed during interrogation to teachings contrary to sharia, Islamic law. He was charged with committing the offence from Sept 1 to Sept 30 last year under Section 52 of the Syariah Criminal Enactment (Negeri Sembilan) Act 1992, as amended in 2019. The law provides for a maximum penalty of two years’ imprisonment or a fine of RM5,000, or both.

During the trial, initiated by Abdul Wafi Ramli, Hafiz Lazim and Amil Yahya, while Norasid was not represented by a lawyer, the prosecutor asked the court to impose the maximum sentence, because his activities would have harmed the faith of Muslims. The defendant, who has three children, asked for a lighter sentence because he is HIV positive, is self-employed and earns less than 1,200 ringgit a month. He also asked that he be tried on two other charges related to his teachings, which will be considered in October.

Meanwhile, a married couple and their 16-year-old son were arrested for following the teachings of the same “heretical” religious sect in Negeri Sembilan, on the west coast of the Malaysian peninsula. Head of the operational unit of the Negeri Sembilan Islamic Religious Affairs Department, Ahmad Zaki Hamzah, said the couple were in their 40s and their son did not attend school.

The family was located at Felda Sungai Kelamah plantation in Tampin. The couple had been renting a house in the settlement for the past six months, while their son remained at his original home in Felda Palong 3. Laptops and mobile phones were also seized during the arrests.

According to religious authorities, the family had adhered to the strict teachings and had also spread them to local residents for more than a year. In addition to believing in the existence of a new prophet, offering a different shahādah (the testimony of faith with which a Muslim declares that he believes in one God and in the prophetic mission of Muhammad) and trying to merge three religions – Islam, Judaism and Christianity – they did not consume meat that was not slaughtered by the sect.

Throughout this time the group is said to have operated discreetly, meeting in restaurants or cafes. The members, who include professionals, are spread across the country and have an unidentified leader to whom they often refer. The couple and their son are being held in pretrial detention under Section 52 of the Negeri Sembilan Syariah Criminal Enactment 1992 for “dubious teachings” and ideology that deviates from the dictates of the Islamic faith.

The phenomenon of “Islamic-inspired” groups that are considered deviant is not new in the Malaysian archipelago: among others, the Southeast Asian country has in the past had to deal with Al-Arqam, a locally based Islamic religious cult headed by the late Ashaari Mohammad. The government banned the sect on 21 October 1994. More than five members of the sect, including Ashaari Mohammad, were arrested from their hideout in Thailand and deported to Malaysia for detention under the Internal Security Act.

Since Al-Arqam was banned, some of the group’s sponsored activities, such as the “Ikhwan Polygamy Club” and the “Obedient Wives Club,” have attracted media attention and criticism. Two books written by Khadijah Aam, Ashaari Mohammad’s wife, have also been banned on religious grounds, including the claim that Allah has endowed Ashaari Mohammad with supernatural powers.