APRIL 15 — When he was prime minister, Tun Abdullah Ahmad Badawi – affectionately called “Pak Lah” – introduced “Islam Hadhari” (Civilisational Islam).
Pak Lah visioned it as the approach for nation building and good governance in which the principle of justice and fairness for everyone in Malaysia retained the highest priority.
The approach served to establish a fresh climate of trust between different religions and ethnic groups in the country.
Pak Lah was convinced that Islam Hadhari was suitable for plural societies everywhere as it encompassed the humane teachings of Islam.
In his own words, “central to Islam Hadhari is the civilisational potential that Islam offers for the renewal of societies, grounded upon the essentials for human wellbeing, uprightness, and equity.”
In October 2009, Pak Lah launched his brainchild – the Institute of Advanced Islamic Studies (IAIS) Malaysia – to provide a platform for Muslims and non-Muslims to exchange critical views on sensitive issues in a reciprocally respectful manner.
File photo of Tun Abdullah Ahmad Badawi (left) seen engaging in a friendly conversation with Palestinian Foreign Minister Farouk Kaddoumi and the country’s ambassador to Malaysia, Ahmad Al Farra (right), during a break following the opening of the NAM Committee Meeting in May 2004. — Bernama pic
He also visioned IAIS as a forum dedicated to inter-disciplinary research into the critical issues of reconciling tradition with modernity, inter-ethnic and interfaith relations, and the refinement of educational methods in our centres of learning.
At the launch, Pak Lah called on the researchers at IAIS to embark on the demanding task of ensuring that faith and moral integrity take their rightful place in the public sphere, and that wisdom and intelligence guide the nation’s policies and shape the country’s global position.
I was one of the researchers then. To this day, I still remember his closing remarks at the launch. He said:
“We must effectively employ our imagination and creative intelligence towards raising the superstructure of [civilisational renewal] grounded on the solid base now in place. The work of renewing human civilisation through equipping it with more adequate ethical and intellectual resources for negotiating the needs of our late-modern age is a sacred trust to be met with confidence, hope in the future, and reliance on the grace and guidance of All-Mighty God.”
But during my short stint at IAIS, it is this that I better remembered Pak Lah: a good listener.
It made him a leader. He was indeed one. Al-Fatihah.
* This is the personal opinion of the writers or publication and does not necessarily represent the views of Malay Mail.
