News From : DagangHalal.com (23 Jul 2010)
PUTRAJAYA, July 23 (Bernama) — Operators of hotels which have yet to be issued with the Malaysian halal certificate are advised to apply for it from the Malaysian Islamic Development Department (Jakim) or the Islamic Religious Department in their respective states before Ramadan.
Jakim director-general, Datuk Wan Mohamad Sheikh Abdul Aziz, said immediate approval would be given to hotels which submitted their applications now, but on the condition that they met all the stipulated requirements.
“With the coming of Ramadan, many ‘buka puasa’ (breaking of fast) events will be held at hotels, Jakim will have special officers to process applications for the halal certificate,” he told reporters here Friday.
He also said that awareness courses on the requirements for halal certificate were being held by Jakim, with the cooperation of the Halal Industry Development Corporation and the Malaysian Associations of Hotels, for hotel operators in Selangor, Langkawi, Penang and Johor since early this month.
This course was necessary in view that only 64 hotels nationwide had been issued with the halal certificate, he added.
In another development, Wan Mohamad said Jakim had published three pamphlets, comprising guidelines for Muslims to perform their religious obligations, like fasting, taking the ablution and praying, as hospital in-patients or when they were sick, which were written in Khmer.
These pamphlets would be distributed to the Muslim community in Cambodia, he added.
He added that Jakim also planned to publish similar pamphlets for distribution to the Muslim community in Vietnam.
— BERNAMA