Some corpse snatching incidents

Originally published here.
Republished by the good Major here

I will just provide a snippet.

A week after Wong Sau Lan's interment, it was revealed by Associated Press
and AFP that another Malaysian had been buried as a Muslim, against the wishes
of relatives. 74-year old Chinese Buddhist Mr Gan Eng Gor died on January 18,
2008. His eldest son, a convert to Islam, claimed that Mr Gor had converted to
Islam in July 2007, a claim denied by the other members of his family.Mr Gor had
suffered a stroke, and had been unable to talk for two years before his death.
One of Mr Gor's eight children said: "We have been practising Buddhists all our
lives. How is it that none of us, including my mother who has been looking after
my sick father for the past two years, has no knowledge of this?"

A Syariah High Court in Negeri Sembilan state insisted that Mr Gor had converted to Islam on July 3, 2007. As the other members of the family did not attend the Islamic court, judge Mohamad Nadzri Abdul Rahman ruled in favor of the eldest son. Mr Gor was buried as a Muslim.

It seems the onus is not on the state or authorities to prove that the deceased has converted to Islam. I wonder if any documentation was produced, what are the procedures or evidence that the Syariah used to 'insist'.

Even if I changed my name today, something simple and yet not exactly a trivial exercise, I have to make declarations and publish in major newspapers and there are civil procedures to follow, to declare to the world, that I have a new name, a new identity.
Here, in Malaysia, if Islam has such an important role, one which provides state accorded benefits, does it not warrant one to declare one's conversion ? Instead, vigilante-cum-authorities merely need to 'insist' and they come in and swoop dead bodies from greiving relatives and loved ones.

Well, this is Islam in Malaysia, no rhyme nor reason is required.