Perlis Hopes To Enhance Collaboration With OCIS

From Adnan Jahaya LONDON, April 27 (Bernama) -- Perlis hopes to enhance collaboration with the Oxford Centre of Islamic Studies (OCIS) here with the aim of expanding the network and the sharing of knowledge. Perlis is a northern state in Peninsular Malaysia. Crown Prince of Perlis Tuanku Syed Faizuddin Putra Jamalullail said the OCIS is known globally for its contribution to academic and Islamic studies. "We hope to bridge the knowledge and perhaps become a strategic partner in any relevant studies," he said during a visit to the OCIS at Oxford University, about 100 km from here, Thursday. Tuanku Syed Faizuddin, who is also president of the Perlis Islamic Affairs and Malay Customs Council (MAIPs), was briefed by OCIS Director Dr Farhan Nizami. OCIS is a recognised independent centre of the University of Oxford established in 1985 to promote the scholarly study of Islam and the Islamic world. Tuanku Syed Faizuddin is heading a delegation of the Perlis Fatwa Committee on a three-day working visit to study the activities of Muslims in the United Kingdom. He lamented on the decline of Islamic civilization, saying it was due to the negligence of Muslims themselves. "Certain quarters of the religion have made it become very narrow, rejecting modernism and only concentrating on issues of fardu 'ain (Islamic obligatory practices)," he said. "The attitude of prejudice and narrow-mindedness toward Western elements only degenerates the Ummah and causes us to become stagnant," he said. Earlier, Tuanku Syed Faizuddin visited the Malaysian High Commission and also launched a Perlis food promotion at Tuk Din restaurant here. -- BERNAMA