But Valentine’s Day is under assault in other Muslim cultures as well, where it is criticized as Christian, not cultural.
In Malaysia, the assault on Valentine’s Day has been even harsher than in Iran, where the Islamic Republic has tried to stop sales of Valentine cards and gifts. The Malaysian religious authorities this month arrested more than 100 Muslim couples for defying a ban on any activities marking Valentine’s Day.
The Islamic authorities in Malaysia in 2005 issued a fatwa warning Muslims against celebrating Valentine’s Day, saying it could lead to vice, especially pre-marital sex. The edict has been enforced since then.
The federal-level Malaysian Islamic Development Department, better known as Jakim, also launched a campaign entitled Mind The Valentine’s Day Trap, urging Muslims to stay away from all programs associated with Valentine’s Day.
The Selangor State Islamic Religious Department, one of several such authorities, conducted a raid with the help of local police on budget hotels from midnight to 6 a.m. Valentine’s Day.
Officials arrested more than 200 Muslims for celebrating Valentine’s Day, the department said in a statement, without elaborating. It said 80 of them would be charged in the Sharia Court for defying the department’s ban against the celebration of lovers’ day. The rest either dispersed or agreed to be
counseled.
Explaining the ban on Valentine’s Day celebrations, Jakim said Muslims are not allowed to observe the special day as it is linked to Christianity, which irked non-Muslim political parties and other groups.
The Malaysian Chinese Association, a political party, said people who linked the holiday to immoral activities were “bigots” and “enemies of the state.”
The reaction in the Malay community is mixed. Some Malays urged their friends via Facebook and Twitter not to observe the holiday but instead prepare themselves for the celebration of the Prophet birthday the following day.
But not all Malays agreed that Valentine’s Day celebrations would necessarily lead to immoral acts. “Happy V Day. Am so grateful for a government that micro-manages my life and does all my thinking,” human rights lawyer Malik Imtiaz Sarwar wrote with sarcasm in a Twitter message.
Countries like Iran and Saudi Arabia have also banned Valentine’s Day celebrations. (See last week’s Iran Times, page one.) In India, Hindu radical groups held demonstrations in some states against Valentine’s Day.
In the world’s most populous Muslim country, Indonesia, the top Islamic body appeared to have softened its hardline stance towards Valentine’s Day. Indonesia Ulama Council secretary-general Ichwan Sam told the Jakarta Globe that while Valentine’s Day is not part of Islamic culture, the council would allow people to celebrate it if they choose to do so.
“Valentine’s Day is just a fad among youngsters and, just like any fad, it will fade away,” he said.
Valentine’s Day was originally Saint Valentine’s Day, and was a saint’s day in the Roman Catholic calendar. But it had no link to romantic love in the church and was removed from the Catholic calendar in 1969 because nothing about Saint Valentine could be verified—and probably because the Vatican was displeased with the link to romance. The link to romantic love began as a secular tie around 1400 and was never sanctioned by the church. Thus, the link to Christianity is in the name only; it has never had anything to do with the faith.