Oleh/By		:	DATO' SERI DR. MAHATHIR BIN MOHAMAD 
Tempat/Venue 	: 	RIYADH, SAUDI ARABIA 
Tarikh/Date 	: 	22/03/97 
Tajuk/Title  	: 	THE OCCASION OF THE CONFERMENT OF 	
			THE KING FAISAL INTERNATIONAL 
			PRIZE FOR SERVICE TO ISLAM FOR 1997 



   1.    Firstly, let me express my sincere appreciation  to
  the  Saudi  Government and to the Selection Committee  in
  particular,  for  conferring on me the 1997  King  Faisal
  International Prize for service to Islam.
  
  2.   I  am  honoured and overwhelmed by this  recognition
  and  it  is  with pride and much humility that  I  accept
  this  prize.     This  prize is also a  great  honour  to
  Malaysia  and  its  people  both  Muslim  and  non-Muslim
  without  whose  tolerance, sensitivity  and  respect  for
  each  other  Malaysia would not be what it  is  today,  a
  multi-racial,  multi-religious,  yet  politically  stable
  and  economically prosperous country, which accepts Islam
  as the state religion.
  
  3.    But then the bases for these achievements were laid
  some  900  years  ago, when Islam came to Malaysia.  Like
  all  today's  Muslims  our  distant  ancestors  were  not
  Muslims.   In  the  Arabian  Peninsular  too  the   idol-
  worshipping  jahilliah  became Muslims  over  1400  years
  ago. The other Muslims were blessed with the religion  at
  different  periods  after that,  some  through  conquests
  certainly, but many more through the exemplary  behaviour
  and  achievements of the Muslims who came in contact with
  them.    Even   the  Muslim  conquerors  influenced   the
  conversion  through  their worldly  success  as  much  as
  their  preachings  on Islam.  And so  the  Spaniards  and
  Europeans,  Christians though they were,  embraced  Islam
  when Al-Andalus was under Muslim rule.
  
  4.    But the Malays were not conquered or forced in  any
  way.   They  converted  because the Muslim  traders  from
  Hadramaut, the first Western people to come to the  Malay
  states  were  obviously successful people in the  worldly
  sense.    They   were   great   ship-builders,   sailors,
  celestial navigators and traders.  They were learned  not
  just  in  matters  of  religion  but  also  in  medicine,
  geography  and  mathematics.  As Muslims  they  were  not
  just  devout,  performing their  prescribed  rituals  but
  they   were   kind  and  charitable,  not  arrogant   and
  domineering  as  were the later Westerners  from  Europe.
  They  were  simply  good  people  who  reflect  the  true
  teachings  of  Islam, who probably excited the  curiosity
  and  admiration of the animistic Malays and  their  Rajas
  or  rulers.  And so these exemplary Muslim traders gained
  influence  over the Rajas who accepted Islam  and  caused
  their subjects to embrace it.
  
  5.    Had  the first Muslims who landed in Malaysia  been
  ignorant  paupers belonging to different sects of  Islam,
  constantly fighting each other and slitting each  other's
  throats,  even  if they pray and fast, the  ancestors  of
  today's  Malays  would  have  rejected  Islam.   In   the
  context  of  today's  world, it  is  very  doubtful  that
  today's  Muslims would succeed in spreading the blessings
  of  the  Islamic religion to the Malays if they  are  not
  already Muslims.
  
  6.    But  Alhamdulillah, the Muslims  who  came  to  the
  Malay  states  900  years  ago  were  the  equivalent  of
  today's  developed and advanced races.  They  were  well-
  educated,  skilled,  technologically  superior  and  true
  practitioners  of  the teachings of  Islam  not  just  in
  matters  of  religious rituals but in demonstrating  that
  Islam  was indeed Ad-deen or a way of life.  And  so  the
  animistic  ancestors  of the Malays embraced  Islam  with
  such  enthusiasm and faith that they destroyed all  their
  old    idols    and   temples.    Today,    Malays    are
  constitutionally only Malays if they are Muslims.
  
  7.    The  progress  of the Malays after  conversion  and
  presently  owe  much to Islam as a way of  life.    There
  had  been  lapses  of  course  but  by  and  large  Malay
  civilisation  and  its  progress  in  the  arts  and  the
  sciences,  in the systems of Government, the  concept  of
  justice  and  the rule of law, have been  the  result  of
  attempts to adhere to the teachings of Islam.
  
  8.    I  say  attempts  because there  have  always  been
  conflicts  and  contradictions in the interpretations  of
  Islamic teachings.  Despite the fact that all Malays  are
  Sunni   Muslims  and  followers  of  Imam   Shafie,   the
  interpretations  are  not  always  standard  or  uniform.
  There  is, therefore, a great deal of confusion  when  we
  attempt to follow the tenets of Islam.
  
  9.    Still,  we  have  managed to  remain  faithful  and
  committed to Islam, to use it to guide us so that in  our
  desire  to  make material progress we have  not  forsaken
  religion  or relegated it to the background.  Indeed,  we
  believe that our material progress is in accord with  and
  in  full support of the teachings of Islam, in particular
  the  injunction regarding the brotherhood of Muslims  and
  the  need for us to be strong so we may be able to defend
  ourselves  and  our  faith  against  those  who  wish  to
  separate us from our religion and destroy it.
  
  10.    To   us   political  stability,  good  government,
  knowledge  of  all the sciences and technology,  material
  wealth  and modern sophistication are all a part  of  the
  process  of  strengthening the Muslims Ummah,  so  as  to
  defend  successfully  the faith and  our  need  to  `amal
  ma'aruf   nahi   mungkar'.   To  us  rejection   of   the
  brotherhood  of  Muslims, violent feuds between  us,  the
  killing  of other Muslims in the name of Islam and  Allah
  Subhanahu  wa  Ta'ala  when  in  fact  the  objective  is
  political,  to  us all these cannot be Islamic.   Indeed,
  we  believe  that being just to the non-Muslims  who  are
  not  against  us  simply reflects the true  teachings  of
  Islam. We have always to remember that as much as  we  do
  not like Muslim minorities in non-Muslim countries to  be
  oppressed,  we must not oppress non-Muslim minorities  in
  our midst.
  
  11.   Guided  by these Islamic or Islamically  acceptable
  principles,  we  have  found no difficulty  in  achieving
  `hassannah'  in this world and insya-Allah  in  the  next
  world, in the akhirat.
  
  12.   Many  Muslims will of course disagree with  us  and
  try  to make out that we are `secular'.  We are not going
  to  argue  with  them because we know that debating  with
  them or opposing them will not convince them that we  are
  right.   But  we believe and we are equally convinced  in
  our  beliefs  that what we do is in the  service  and  in
  accord  with Islam.  Nothing will convince us that  Islam
  requires  us to pass judgement on other Muslims  who  are
  our  brothers  and  to act violently  to  negate  Islamic
  brotherhood,  to  destroy the unity of  the  Muslims,  to
  weaken  them  and to cause them to be dependent  on  non-
  Muslims  rather than Muslims and in many cases  to  cause
  them to be enslaved by the professed enemies of Islam.
  
  13.  This is our faith and our creed in Malaysia.  We  do
  not  ask to be complimented or to be condemned by  anyone
  on  this  earth.  Allah Subhanahu wa Ta'ala will  be  our
  Judge  and  in  the  hereafter we will receive  our  just
  rewards  or  our punishments.  No one, but no one  should
  presume  that they, and they alone are privy to  the  day
  of  Judgement, to what will be Allah's judgement on us in
  the akhirat.  Only Allah Subhanahu wa Ta'ala knows.
  
  14.   Your  Royal  Highness and dear brothers  in  Islam,
  once  again  I would like to thank those who have  deemed
  me  fit to receive this award and may Allah Subhanahu  wa
  Ta'ala bless us all and give us guidance.