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PUTRAJAYA, MALAYSIA, December 4, 2003: Beginning next year, Hindu, Buddhist, Sikh and Christian priests on visit passes need not make fresh applications to extend their services after serving in the country for one year, Deputy Home Minister Datuk Chor Chee Heung said Wednesday. Instead, they only need to inform State immigration directors and they would be given extensions automatically, he said. The move was to ease the workload of immigration officers, he said. Previously, such extensions could be made only at the Immigration Department headquarters, he told reporters after meeting representatives of the Buddhist, Christian, Hindu and Sikh Consultative Council. Chor said: “For year-to-year service extensions for foreign priests, the Immigration Department has agreed to give the approvals at State level, the State directors can approve the extensions,” he said. He, however, said foreign priests are not allowed to serve in the country for more than five years. He said applications for replacement priests would be processed in a month. At present, there are 772 foreign priests, including musicians, serving in various places of worship in the country as compared to 404 last year, he said. He said they are mainly from India, Sri Lanka, Japan, China and Myanmar. Chor said the Government still maintained the five-year maximum service term for foreign priests although there were requests to extend their tenure up to 10 years as was done previously. He said the Government had also asked the religious consultative council to train Malaysians or find priests from among locals so as not to rely too much on foreigners. “But this seem difficult as the salaries of priests working in Malaysia is quite low and hence, Malaysians are not keen to take up priesthood as their career. “Only foreign priests are willing to come here even though the salaries are not very high,” he added.

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