Sarawak teenager says teachers tried to convert her to Islam

Sabrina Ngumbang's mother, Roslen Umbil (left) and other relatives show the baju kurung school uniform and prayer clothing the two teachers allegedly gave her upon her conversion to Islam. – Pic courtesy of PRS Youth information chief Bit Surang, March 27, 2015.

A 13-year-old schoolgirl in Miri, Sarawak has demanded that the authorities of her school order two of its religious teachers to keep their distance from her after accusing them of attempting to covertly convert her to Islam.

The accusation by Sabrina Ngumbang, an Iban and a Form One student at SMK Lutong, went viral on social media after she lodged a police report last Wednesday to force her school, located about 11km from Miri, to take the action against the teachers.

In the police report, she accused one of the teachers of arranging the alleged conversion without her parents' consent, beginning with an alleged pre-conversion ceremony on March 14 at a house in the Samling residential area in Kuala Baram.

Her father Ngumbang Achu, in a letter to the school principal demanding action, implicated another teacher of complicity in the attempted conversion.

Both teachers are reportedly from the peninsula.

Sabrina said one of the teachers, accompanied by two unidentified women and three men, picked her up from her home at Mile 1 of Jalan Kuala Baram and took her to the house a few kilometres away for the pre-conversion ceremony.

Sabrina said she was then given RM250 by the teacher and the witnesses to buy prayer clothing after reciting some prayers to signify she had embraced Islam.

The girl said she was then told that her conversion registration would be made on March 16 when the Islamic religious department office opened.

Sabrina said she had lodged the report because she did not want to be harassed by the teacher as the conversion attempt had affected her studies.

Parti Rakyat Sarawak (PRS) Women chief Datuk Doris Brodie said she was shocked to learn about the attempt to convert the underaged girl.

“I am no expert on the issue of Islamisation or conversion but I do feel that it is wrong for a minor to be coerced to do so, even if she is a willing party, because she is underaged.

“If the intention of the two Muslim teachers had been sincere, they should have at least consulted her parents or family members instead of taking the matter into their own hands to have the girl converted to the Islamic faith," said Brodie, adding that the incident was “truly unacceptable”.

“It is this kind of situation that can cause religious tension and mistrust among various races in this country.

“Sarawak is a peaceful state where various races exist together in harmony and are respectful of each other.

“I urge the Education Ministry and all relevant authorities to look into this matter seriously and speedily.”

PKR Miri MP Dr Michael Teo condemned the attempted conversion and said the party would fight to get any of teachers from outside Sarawak “who are more interested in propagating religion” to be deported and barred from future entry.

“Muslim teachers that are posted to Sarawak have no business spreading Islam to non-Muslim students.

“The people of Sarawak have all this time enjoyed religious freedom and lived harmoniously with each other,” Teo said.

He said PKR was not against freedom of religion but added that if a person chose to embrace another faith, it should be done according to the law.

The state minister that oversees education matters, Datuk Fatimah Abdullah, took an unexpected detour to the school after closing the Sarawak Home Executive programme in Miri this morning.

After Friday prayers, she called for a meeting with the school principal, the two teachers, Sabrina and her parents.

Forced or covert conversion is not a norm in Sarawak although there have been increasing reports of Islamic groups from the peninsula flouting the state's Islamic Religious Department's strict rule on such practices.

- TMI