Muslims: Don’t touch Christian icons in govt offices

THE National Commission on Muslim Filipinos in Cebu is calling on congress not to approve House Bill 6330 or the Religious Freedom in Government Offices bill.

Aldin Pangarungan, Head of the Cultural Affairs Division of National Commission on Filipinos in Cebu (NCMF) said  the  bill violates constitutional rights.

Pangarungan said that Muslims  don’t believe in the presence of these images, they respect the beliefs of the Catholic Christians and their effort to keep their faith strong.

The display of these images and as well as the Bible is part of Filipino culture. Philippines is also known as a Catholic country, added the Muslim leader.

“The Constitution, which is the fundamental law of our democratic country, recognizes the customs, traditions, and institutions of every Filipino citizen. Passing the bill would violate the constitution,” Pangarungan said.

HB 6330 seeks to prohibit the holding of religious rites in government events and the display of religious icons in government properties.

The Muslim leader said that instead of making policies to rid public facilities and offices of any form of religion, the government should support their campaign to put prayer rooms in government offices.

He said they have beenhave been campaigning for this since 1984.

The number of Muslim residents in Cebu is growing every year, he said.

There are more than 60,000 Muslims from 11 Muslim communities in Cebu City with more than 122,000 Muslims working and residing in Central Visayas.