SHOULD ONE BE FORCED TO TELL?

Should someone who wants to convert to Islam be forced to tell his / her family and close relatives? Isn't forcing someone to do something he don't want to do encroach on his/her rights? When a person make the most important decision of his life, he must have thought long and hard before taking this big step into a new life. One changes religion not because he/she wants to escape hardship, get married to a Muslim or run away from his/her duties and responsibilities. He/she willingly and conciously accept Islam because he/she believes Islam is the only religion that can save his/her soul after gaining knowledge and understanding about Islam. Changing religion should not be like one changes clothes.

In Islam, there is no compulsion. Therefore, nobody should force the converts to tell his/her family unless he/she wants to do so. The timing and place is for the convert to chose. Should he/she inform the family before or after his/her conversion to Islam is up to the person. Recently, the Malaysian Islamic Development Department (JAKIM) has announced that the senior Islamic leaders has rejected the proporsal to have non-Muslims to tell their families before converting to Islam, at a recent conference in Seremban, attended by state legal advisors, muftis, syarie judges and Islamic department directors. Personally, I think this is to prevent any pressure being applied to the new converts by the families and/or relatives. However,the records of new converts must be done more efficiently and kept up-to-date to avoid any confussion. The non-Muslims fear that their spouses might neglect his/her duties and responsibilities to the families should be tackled by JAKIM more vigoriously. More dialogues should be held with NGOs and non-Muslim organisations to explain the procedures, syariah laws, etc and answering addressing their apprehensions about Islam in general.