To ban or not to ban? To cane or not to cane? These are a couple of questions we need to seriously think about today, that could well affect us tomorrow.

Superstar diva Beyonce Knowles will not be performing in Malaysia this October 25.

Got your attention?

Hold on, don't update your Facebook or Twitter just yet. This is what shall come to 'pass' if the Parti Islam Semalaysia (PAS) Youth Wing had their way... but they haven't, so don't hit the 'update' button. What you should be clicking, however, is the 'alert' button.

In present times, with the news of concerts by foreign artists being demanded to be banned or cancelled and the cropping up of issues of stricter punishment for those caught in religious wrongdoing, there is an undercurrent of alarm that we cannot ignore.

And it seems to spell 'All Concerts Banned in the future!'

In the past, we the young, probably did not expect all this when we 'X-ed' the spot next to the opposition in the General Elections of March 2008, did we? Neither did we expect an apparently drastic swing from a moderate Islamic country to one that seems to be veering towards the extreme under the state rule of the Pakatan Rakyat.

This is a fact that did not escape the notice of many parties, who have come out to say that there is a trend in harsher, stricter punishments meted out by the Syariah Court and the increasing number of protests against concerts to be held here.

Case in point: Beyonce cancelled her proposed concert here two years ago, due to threats of protests by the PAS Youth over her trademark skimpy outfits - and superstars such as Gwen Stefani and the Black Eyed Peas have been told to cover up or risk the wrath of the religious.

Even Danish pop ballad crooners Michael Learns to Rock, who are the epitome of clean, sappy, pop ballads, were protested against. Avril Lavigne, Canadian punk rocker extraordinaire, with her t-shirts, ripped jeans and trainers, was considered 'sexy'. And she was (yeap, you got it) protested against too.

Not only that, model Kartika Sari Dewi Shukarno, 32, recently made the headlines when she pleaded guilty to drinking beer in a bar and accepted her punishment of six strokes of the 'rotan' in order to 'set an example to others'. This punishment has been met with mixed response - some saying that it is too harsh and inhumane and others saying it is appropriate as she has broken the law.

More recently, the Syariah High Court in Selangor ordered an unmarried couple to be receive six strokes of the cane, for making out in a car. They have since paid a fine of RM5,000 each, and are appealing the caning. 

Prior to this, a syariah court in another state ordered an Indonesian Muslim man to be whipped six times and jailed a year for drinking liquor at a restaurant.

So, how do our youths view such developments?

On Concerts and Canings

N. Abdullah, 21, feels that such protests are overrated; given the accessibility to information that people enjoy today.

"Case in point: if she (Beyonce) is indeed a bad influence, she wouldn't be so only during concerts, but on television, on the Internet and in the media as well," he said. "Yet, we do not see a protest or a blanket ban of anything related to her, such as albums, promotional posters, music videos and so forth, being enforced."

"Therefore, the objective of these protests becomes questionable at best, since the idea behind the protest is supposedly to protect Malaysians from negative cultural influences." 

N discusses these issues often with his friends, both Muslim and non-Muslim.

"When I talk about this to my friends, we discuss the principles behind the word 'democracy'. I personally believe that people have a right to make choices and decisions with regards to what is best for them," he stressed. "The idea behind someone telling us what we can do or not do base on their personal beliefs, and not our own, is a point that is often raised in discussions with my friends."

"In a way, these protests and bans can be seen as a sign of disrespect and also an insult towards other people's beliefs, principles and rights," he pointed out. "What we have to bear in mind here is that Malaysians always have a choice. Should they feel that it (the concert) is not their cup of tea, they are in no way, forced against their will to be involved. But the choice should always be there for us."

However, N feels that most of the developed world would feel that Malaysia has taken a step backwards in terms of progress. For instance, the issue of the caning of model Kartika and banning Beyonce's concert has received no small amount of international scrutiny - the protests over Avril Lavigne's concert here made an inglorious headline on Yahoo!'s OMG! (Yahoo's entertainment and celebrity gossip site) some months ago.

"I do not fault them for thinking that way," he said. "Religious officials in Malaysia have to open up their minds and diversify their approach towards enforcement of Syariah laws as well as to make Muslims take better interest in religious obligations." 

Another issue N brings up is the drinking of alcohol by Muslims. "I feel that the punishments are questionable, since they are not enforced on every single Muslim who consumes alcohol. If the model deserves punishment, then it should be meted out based on fairness and not as an opportunity for religious officials to flex their muscles."

Nonetheless, N believes that Malaysia is still very tolerant and accepting of other races, religions and beliefs. It's just that there are certain parties who would endeavour to upset the moderate, fair Islamic practices and turn it into something more extreme.  

"The fact that we embrace other festivities apart from Hari Raya and declaring those days a national holiday to allow for celebrations is proof that we are pretty moderate in our practice."

On the contrary to N's views, Ash, a 21-year-old Muslim student, believes that the main concern behind these protests is in the interests of the young Muslims who will be attending the concert. "It is at these concerts - where there are large numbers of people - that chances of inappropriate behaviour present themselves even more."

Concurrently, Ash believes that Malaysia is still very much a democratic nation; take for example how punishment by civil law is still meted out, and not according to the Hudud law in it's entirety. The caning of the model, he feels, is the right action by creed of law.

And Ash isn't overly concerned about the issue of how our country's image may be affected by this: reason being that it is an internal matter for our country, and he believes we really must see that the punishments are not for the mere sake of punishment but to deter and remind others to refrain from any wrongdoing.

On the opposite side of the fence is student Mohd. Hazim, 22, who thinks that "all this is outrageous."

"Our country is a democratic, multi-racial country. Everyone should be free to do as they want. Continuing to hue and cry over concerts would only hurt our country in the long run."

On the other hand however, he believes that the caning of the model is not a harsh sentence. "It really is understandable - the law is the law. Besides, the caning is for humiliation rather than pain; harsh is beheading or getting put in the chair, not six strokes of the rotan."

"As to whether PAS really has anything to do with this recent increase of such issues, it remains to be seen. There are those who are of the extremist, ultra-conservative side of the party and they do not represent the entire party."

His views are echoed by Norshahima binti Saharuddin, 23, who does not believe that PAS or any political party is responsible for who and what we are as a nation.

"The protest reflects most Malaysian's opinion on their cultural and religious values. So it has something to do with 'reminding' certain artistes to adjust to our values, not just force theirs onto us."

She pointed out that the protest was not up against the artists themselves, but on 'how' they would perform here.

"It seems that certain artistes (like Beyonce) did not intend to compromise with Malaysia's moral policy which concerns the well-being of the community here. It is because of that that I think the protest was necessary." 

She has talked over this issue with her friends, and she laments the Malaysian mentality of being too westernised. "Certain Malaysians have become too westernised and refuse to accept the fact that the Westerners should also respect our moral and religious values."

Preferring not to delve into the issue of Malaysia as a moderate or strict Islamic State, Norshahima chooses instead to look at things differently.

"We are a nation; with multicultural backgrounds, different in every way, yet we respect each other. Islam, along with other religious views teaches good values, and that is what makes us who we are today. There's nothing 'extremist' about respecting our nation's values."

"Honestly," she stressed, "the caning of Kartika has had a positive outcome. She realised her mistake and accepted the consequences. Our country's image has nothing to do with the caning. If anything, it indicates that we deal with these issues with fairness and justice."  

She explained that such punishments are for the deserving that reject the conditions and rules applied to them.

"The punishments are not meant to abuse her but to teach her and others. In the model's case, it is a merciful act (Islam has stated different procedures for different genders and their level of crime); she will be fully dressed, with six strokes of the cane, and the punisher must not swing his arm too wide, so it barely hurts. The main point of a punishment is so that he/she will repent, not to inflict pain."

In contrast to NorShahima's thoughts, president of the International Movement for a Just World Chandra Muzaffar, pointed out that the international attention on Kartika's case could "provide ammunition" for some people to criticise Malaysia's capacity for religious tolerance.

"She should not be caned in the first place. What we should do is advise her. This punitive psychology is a bane for Muslim societies, and we should get away from it," he said.

22-year-old Matthew Lim said: "It is my opinion that this group of protesters is too conservative and is struggling to catch up with the pace of globalisation."

 "A music concert from a foreign artist is just purely for entertainment and scanty clothing doesn't mean anything - young people can so easily access pictures of scantily clad women and of such 'evils' over the internet or even on television."

Truth be told, Lim said, he doubts that it has anything to do with political parties like PAS, and more about certain conservative Muslims, and when he discusses these things with his friends, they agree that it is ridiculous to continue being so closed-minded.

Nonetheless, he does not see things getting worse, rather, he believes that with the adapting of times and with the rise of globalisation, these protests will stop. Although he has noticed this issue receiving a lot of flak from the international Press, he does not believe it will have an impact on our country's image so much as it will impact among his Muslim friends.

21-year-old Isabelle Lai, on the other hand, does not agree with Lim but shares Chandra's views about Kartika's case and how it could impact Malaysia's image in the international arena.

She adds: "I feel that Malaysia seems to be heading towards a government where religion and secular decisions come hand in hand."

Lai, a student, discusses these issues with both her Muslim and non-Muslim friends, and all of them, she said, have expressed bewilderment and disappointment over the entire series of rulings that portray Malaysia as an extremist Islam country - something which is not suitable for our multi-racial, multi-religious nation.

The future, she believes, is just a little bit bleak.

"Of course I am concerned over the image of our country. Image is everything. The government spouts so much stuff about economic development and so on, but how are we going to get the investors to come in with this kind of image?" she said.

"There are so many other developing countries in Southeast Asia. I feel that the overly extreme religious factions are making a big deal over nothing. In addition, Malaysian students who go overseas might have to suffer from negative stereotyping because of this."

This is echoed by K. Vinuraj, 22, who said quite frankly that he finds the banning of concerts ridiculous.

Vinuraj shares the same opinion as many of his friends and in the end, their discussions come back to the same conclusion: it is about personal right and freedom. "Let's look at the caning of Kartika: a large sum in fines should be more than enough. Caning is just too harsh."

Even former Prime Minister, Tun Dr. Mahathir Mohamad, has stated that he thought the punishment of Kartika was too strict, and the forgiveness of first-time offenders should be the priority.

In his blog, he posed the question of whether this punishment is appropriate, given the number of differing opinions stemming from this issue.

"Is Islam not merciful to first-time offenders?" Mahathir asked. He also said that fairness and consideration were the main tenets in Islam.

25 year old Bernard Cheah feels that although he is non-Muslim, he worries that this increase in stricter sentencing and protests is a poor move and not a good direction for our country to take, should we want to propel ourselves as a developed, forward-thinking nation.

"This will set us back in years to come, if we are to continue with these stricter sentencing," he said. "In addition, these issues (of banning and caning) do not go well with the Prime Minister's vision of 1Malaysia, which should encompass all Malaysians, regardless of race and religion, as an advanced, first-world country."