Operationalizing and Regulating Religious Freedom: Apostasy and Administrative "Reasonableness" in Malaysia and Beyond

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Main author: Nelson, Matthew J.
Other authors: Shah, Dian A. H.
Format: Journal Article           
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id eprints-25270
recordtype eprints
institution SOAS, University of London
collection SOAS Research Online
language English
language_search English
description As a fundamental human right, religious freedom is commonly associated with the right to choose or change one’s religion (religious self-identification). We use the famous Malaysian case of Muslim-to-Christian convert Lina Joy to examine the operationalization of this freedom—not so much as a negative freedom constraining state power but as a fundamental right tied to administrative procedures underpinning state recognition. From a constitutional perspective, the balance between fundamental rights and administrative power is complex. The legal standards governing administrative procedures for religious conversion vary from country to country and, for our purposes, from state to state even within Malaysia’s federal order. Asking “when do such procedures become ‘unreasonable’ in ways that undermine core human rights protections,” we highlight the historical, constitutional, and political contexts within which Malaysian notions of administrative “reasonableness” unfold. The operationalization of religious freedom as a fundamental right, we argue, hinges on a deeply contextualized understanding of the political contingencies surrounding notions of administrative “reasonableness.”
format Journal Article
author Nelson, Matthew J.
author_facet Nelson, Matthew J.
Shah, Dian A. H.
authorStr Nelson, Matthew J.
author_letter Nelson, Matthew J.
author2 Shah, Dian A. H.
author2Str Shah, Dian A. H.
title Operationalizing and Regulating Religious Freedom: Apostasy and Administrative "Reasonableness" in Malaysia and Beyond
publisher Oxford University Press
publishDate 2018
url https://eprints.soas.ac.uk/25270/

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