The minister also said his men had no choice but to adhere to these procedures as the Bible Society of Malaysia (BSM) had wanted the Bibles to be released quickly.
“We stamped the bible based on amalan (practice) before... during Abdullah Badawi and even Tun Dr Mahathir’s time,” Hishammuddin told reporters today, referring to the two immediate past prime ministers.
Today, Hishammuddin appeared to suggest that the Christian community’s uproar over what they considered a violation of their holy book, to be manufactured.
“They wanted it to be released quickly... if they want to find fault they can find fault... you can even say the Bibles are smelly after being kept for so long, if you want to find fault (with everything),” the minister claimed.
He said his officials had no intention to deface the bibles, stressing that the Christian community should engage his ministry directly if they had issues or complaints over the measures taken.
However, he also voiced frustration over the inability to bridge the now-widening chasm with the community over the issue.
“We have been engaging with them... but you can only engage with those who want to be engaged, and resolve the issue with those who want it to resolved.
“It’s like hitting your head against a wall... the wall does not budge, but my head is swollen,” he said.
The Bible Society of Malaysia (BSM) was informed yesterday that its shipment of 5,100 Malay-language bibles now being held at Port Klang had already been stamped with the home ministry’s official seal without its prior permission.
The BSM had earlier refused to collect its cargo of holy books that had been detained for the last two years after the home ministry imposed two conditions for their release.
