Preacher Roy on trial

Preacher Roy on trial

JAKARTA: Islamic preacher Muhammad Yusman Roy went on trial Tuesday for performing prayers in Indonesian language, which Muslim ulemas said tarnishes the purity of Arabic-based Islam.

Government prosecutors also charged Roy, head of Itikaf Ngaji Lelaku, an Islamic boarding school in Malang, East Java, for creating unrest among Muslims by spreading pamphlets to promote his teaching to the people.

Roy is accused of denigrating Islam with his bilingual teachings, instead of sticking strictly to Arabic. If found guilty, Roy could face a maximum sentence of five years in prison.

In his teaching, conducted since 2002, Roy ordered to about 300 students to perform shalat -- the Islamic five-times daily obligatory prayers -- using the Arab verses, and directly translated the words into Indonesian.

"I was just offering a discourse to the Muslims. Winning or losing in this trial is not a target for me," Roy was quoted by detik.com online news service, from Malang district court.

Roy's bilingual prayers sparked controversy since April, when the Indonesian Ulemas Council (MUI) issued a fatwa, or religious legal ruling, banning the teaching as haram, or religiously unlawful. -- DPA