Catholic paper gets permit
ICC News:
Weeks after being denied its permit, Catholic paper will be allowed to print in Muslim country
11/15/09 Malaysia (AFP) - A Malaysian Catholic newspaper will be allowed to continue publication after the government withdrew a controversial decision to cancel its publishing permit, the editor said Sunday.
The Herald said earlier this week the government had told it that its permit for next year had not been approved. Under Malaysian law, all publications must renew their permit every year.
The move came amid a long-running dispute over the weekly's use of the word 'Allah' as a translation for 'God' in its Malay-language section. The government argued 'Allah' should be used only by Muslims, who dominate the country's population.
The Herald's editor, Father Lawrence Andrew, said government officials in a meeting on Friday said the paper's permit would be approved, but rejected its request to publish a supplement in a language used by indigenous group on Borneo island.
A home ministry official confirmed The Herald was allowed to continue publishing, and attributed the controversy to 'miscommunication'.
