KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 12 (Askume) – Malaysian authorities on Thursday widened their investigation into a prominent Islamic business organisation, a day after police raided a charity run by the group.More than 400 children suspected of sexual abuse were rescued.
Selangor’s Islamic Religious Department said it was investigating the group’s religious education facilities and asked police to hand over all teaching materials seized during a raid on the house on Wednesday to ensure the group was not committing offences under Islamic law.
Muslim-majority Malaysia operates a dual legal system, with Islamic and secular laws operating simultaneously.
Since most Muslims follow Sunni Islam, state religious authorities have the power to enforce laws against “deviant” teachings.
Police on Wednesday arrested 171 adults, including “ustaz” or Islamic religious teachers, in coordinated raids on 20 premises run by the Global Ikhwan Services and Business (GISB) in two Malaysian states. Those rescued included 201 boys and 201 girls, aged between 1 and 17 years old.
Police Superintendent Lazaruddin Hossain said the raid was in response to reports of neglect, abuse, sexual harassment and sexual assault at the complex that were filed this month.
The Selangor Islamic Religious Department said in a statement on Thursday that the two places raided were registered by the state government as Islamic schools.
The department said it inspected the school in July and found no violations. The company said if any violations are found, it will investigate further and take appropriate action.
A GISB spokesman said on Thursday that the organisation would cooperate with authorities.
GISB denied the sexual abuse allegations in a statement yesterday, saying it did not manage the charity that was raided and that a report would be submitted to the police.
A 19-year-old girl was charged with child abuse on Thursday in connection with the case, state news agency Bernama reported.
Robert Gass, UNICEF’s representative in Malaysia, said the organisation was “deeply shocked and horrified” by the alleged abuse and called for long-term professional medical and psychological support for the children.
GISB, which has links to a banned religious sect in Malaysia, operates businesses ranging from supermarkets to laundromats and has operations in countries including Indonesia, Singapore, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, France, Australia and Thailand, according to its website.
The group acknowledges links to the now-defunct Malaysian Al-Arqam sect, which was outlawed by the government in 1994, but now describes itself as an Islamic group based on Muslim practices.
