Issues and Challenges of The Minority Muslim Community in The Kadazandusun Ethnic Village Area in Sabah

Sabah is as a peaceful and harmonious state with existence of family relationships that have various religious affiliations and communities living in the same area. However, the number of religious for each area in the state of Sabah is not same because there have areas with a Muslim majority and areas with a Christian’s majority. The situation caused an imbalance between the number of Muslims and Christians in the Kadazandusun ethnic settlement area in Sabah. This also causes the minority community in an area to face various issues and challenges in daily life. Therefore, this study was conducted to analyze the issues arising among the minority Muslim community in Sabah and also analyze for the challenges of the Muslim minority in the settlement area of the Kadazandusun community in Sabah. The research method is qualitative and the research instrument is a questionnaire. The results of the study found that the issues arising in the Muslim minority areas in Sabah is about the influence of the religion and culture of the majority, the issue of oppression and others. While the challenges faced by Muslim’s minority in Sabah involve a lack of reading material related to religion, constraints in carrying out da'wah and difficulties in obtaining allocations for the construction of surau.


Introduction
A minority group is a small group in the population of the majority group in a society (Kinloch, 1979).According to Thing (1987), minorities can be interpreted as non-dominant and unique groups seen through physical, cultural, economic and behavioral characteristics.They are usually looked down upon, oppressed, discriminated and prejudiced by the dominant group.While according to the definition by Azizi et.al (2015) also thinks that the majority group is superior to the minority group, he also believes that the minority group is naturally different and isolated, does not have the right to claim privileges, power and position.While according to Burns (1979) there is a strong view especially in the United States that black people (minority group) are inferior to white people (majority group).
This minority group also described as a small group that has similarities in term of descent, religion, culture, ethnicity and race that live in a place (country, region, villages) where the majority of the population is different descent, religion, race and so on (Dictionary Hall Fourth Edition).However, in this study researcher chose to conduct a study on the issues and challenges faced by the Muslim Minority group living in the Kadazandusun ethnic settlement area where the majority of the population is Christian in Sabah.Researchers also see it as important to conduct studies in field because studies conducted in neighboring countries have found that Muslim minority group experience oppression, discrimination, neglect of right and so on.Thus, the researcher chose to conduct this topic of Muslim Minority in Sabah because Sabah have Kadandusun settlement areas with Christian Majority such as Penampang, Tambunan, Ranau, Keningau and others (Department of Statistics Sabah, 2021).
In addition, this study also important to be carried out in order to maintain the good relation that have already formed among the Sabahan community by taking into account interests of all parties including the rights of minority groups.Considering that studied related to this topic of Muslim Minority are still not highlighted in the context of Sabah.Thus, with the existence discussion for this topic be able to provide the right things that Muslim minority can be obtained such as the right of religious education, place to worship such as Surau, the right to speak and others.Next, the researcher also sees this study is important to carry out, so the religious and racial leader in Sabahan know about this issues and challenges faced by the Muslim minority group in Sabah and the action can be taken to resolve this problem.This study also helpful in listening to the voices of the people that cannot be expressed, especially for the minority group in an area.It is hoped that this study can provide some exposure related to minority Muslim in Sabah and appropriate action can be given to helps them.

Background Research
Sabah is the second largest state in Malaysia with a wide diversity of different cultures, ethnicities, tribes, customs, religions and beliefs.The composition shows that the state of Sabah has about 30 ethnicities that speak 50 languages and 80 dialects of different ethnicities (Sintang, 2013).The ethnic majority in the state of Sabah is ethnic Kadazandusun, Bajau and Murut.While the minorities ethnic was ethnic Bisaya, Orang Sungai, Iranun, Kedayan, Suluk and other ethnic groups (Katayya & Paul, 2012).However, the largest ethnic group in Sabah's indigenous community is the Kadandusun ethnic group (Sintang, 2003: 65) whose number is 660,777 (Sabah Statistic Yearbook, 2021).Therefore, the researcher chose to conduct a study on the Kadazandusun ethnic group because this ethnic composition recorded the largest ethnic composition in Sabah.Meanwhile, the district where the majority of the population is from kadazandusun ethnic group is only one district, namely Ranau district, where 78.6% are from Kadazandusun ethnic group and the rest are from other ethnic groups such as Chinese and Malays (Sabah Statistic Yearbook, 2021).
Based on the population statistic of the Ranau district, the number of Muslim is 45.3% while the number of Christian is 53.7% (Sabah Statistic Department 2021).These statistics show that the number of Christians is more than Muslims in Ranau, Sabah (Jabatan Perangkaan Sabah, 2021).In Ranau district, there are also several villages with a majority of Christian population such as at Bundu Tuhan Village, Pahu Village, Matan Village, Kinarutan Village, Ulu Sugut Village and other area.While the Muslim majority areas such as Masilou Village, Cinta Mata Village, Kundasang Lama Village, Lohan Village and many other villages (Daud, 1993).Therefore, the researcher also focused the study on the Ranau district to see the issued happen by the minority Muslim groups in the village of Ranau areas.

Research Methodology
Every research method and design are initial planning before starting the study.Inaccurate selection of research methods and designs will have a significant impact on the findings and also cause problems if the information is shared with other researchers either through reading or discussion (Munawar & Shahizan, 2017: 49).The design of this is a qualitative study that involves literature study data collection instruments and also uses interview methods.This method is important for researchers in identifying and understanding an issue or context of study in a timely manner in situations that require a direct interaction (Munawar & Shahizan, 2017: 71).
In data collection, researchers use library studies, a method requires researchers to analyze their writings and previous studies to obtain information (Piaw, 2014).Therefore, the researchers collected data from various writing sources either primary or secondary sources.The data are analyzed and researched by the researchers in detail to ensure the accuracy of the information.In fact, the researchers also conducted interviews on several religious and racial leaders who have experiences in handling the issues as well as experts in this field.

Result and Discussion
In this section of findings and discussion will be discussed about several things such as: 1] Muslim's Minority Issues in Sabah; 2] Muslim Minority Issues in Ranau and 3] Muslim Minority Challenges in Sabah.The discussion is based on an interview session that has been conducted with several informants.The discussion is as follows

Muslim's Minority Issues
In living a community life, raising issues is a habit that needs to be well resolved because the can cause division in the community.In this section the researcher will analyze the issues arising in the Kadazandusun ethnic settlement area where the Muslim population is a minority.The information will be analyzed based on interview sessions with religious leaders based on their experience in work practices and expertise in the field.The following is a table of interview analysis results conducted by researchers on several informants

Issues in Muslim Minority
The

Influence of Majority Religion
Culture can indeed guarantee harmony among religious believers.But there is an issue arising in a village located in Ranau, I will not mention the name of the village because this matter is sensitive.Where the village head in the area obliges everyone to be involved in activities organized by the church because the population in the area is the majority of Christians.This is one of the sensitive issues.In this village also happened other problem when there was a young person in the village who converted to Islam and wanted to get confirmation of his single status from the village head.The village head deliberately delayed giving his signature with the aim of complicating the matter.

M2
For the areas located in the paddy area, there are still many non-Muslims.But if Islam or Christianity comes to claim they will tend to follow.Thus, the strongest influence will be followed by the people.The paddy area is indeed a Muslim minority area and they tend to follow the current situation.Not only that, in Muslim minority area it also difficult to get help, especially in the construction of mosques.

M1
The where there is a case in Sabah when living in an area where the Muslim minority will always follow the atmosphere and be influenced and eventually be deceived causing them to apostatize.
There is also a case of apostasy that occurs among couples who are engaged and the man is from a Christian-majority village in Ranau.When the woman does not have feelings with the man and asks for the engagement to be broken.So, the man's family asked for their son to return to his original religion.The case will be prolonged and cause a case of apostasy

a. Muslim's Minority Issues in Sabah
Based on the table above, there are 4 issues arising among Muslim Minority for the Kadzandusun ethnic settlements area in Sabah.These issues are presented by informants based on their experiences in handling the problems.Among issues that arising among the Muslim Minority community in the settlements area of Kadazandusun ethnic involve the issue of religious influence.Based on the statements presented by the informants, the influence of religion in one settlements area in Sabah greatly affects the way of their life.When the population of the area is majority Christian, then the minority population in the area has to follow all the activities organized in the area.In fact, the informants also said that the Muslim minority population experienced problems in obtaining funds to develop a prayer hall (surau).
Besides, issue of repression.The rise of the issue due to repression by the majority community against the minority community in that area.According to the informants, this situation seen in several Kadazandusun ethnice settlements area where the majority of the community are Christian, such as in Penampang, Tambunan, Tamparul and several area in Sabah where the Muslim community is somewhat marginalized, looked down upon and repressed due to their relatively small population in the area.
Subsequently, the issue of apostate (murtad).This issue seen through the statements from informants regarding interfaith marriage that occurs in Muslim minority area that doesn't receive the support from their family especially from their parents, affectly at the children who have already being a Muslim need having back to their original religion.In fact, cases of apostasy in Muslim minority areas also occur among pondok students who study Islam when they return to their hometown and influenced by the atmosphere of community life in the area where they live.
Meanwhile, there is also the issue of the absence of atmosphere for preaching in Muslim minority areas.This is seen through the informant's statement regarding the lack of preaching atmosphere among the minority Muslim population in Sabah, causing them to be forced to follow whatever activities are organized in the settlement area for the sake of the development and smooth administration of the area where they live.In fact, the lack of preaching atmosphere among minority Muslim communities in the areas of Sabah also causes them to lack a strong foundation of religious knowledge so that they experience problems in reciting al-Fatihah with the correct pronunciation.
Overall, the researcher saw that all the informants agreed that there was a rise in issues in the Kadazandusun ethnic settlement area where the Muslim population is a minority in Sabah.However, the issues presented by each informant are different according to their experience when working and when handling the problem.However, the researcher saw that all the informants tend to choose the issue lack of preaching atmosphere for settlement areas where the Muslim population is a minority.The researcher also observed that all the informants agreed that the issue of apostasy is the main issue for settlement areas with minority Muslim populations.

b. Muslim's Minority Issues in Ranau
Based on the table above, there are four issues arising in the Muslim Minority village area in Ranau.Among them, the issue of the influence of the majority religion.This is seen through a case brought by an informant regarding a village whose population is majority Christian in the Ranau district which obliges all residents in the village to follow a program organized by the church.The influence of the majority religion is also seen through the attitude of the village head in the Muslim minority area who deliberately delays the affairs of children who have converted to Islam when dealing with them.
In addition, the influence of the majority culture.According to the informant, this issue is also seen to occur in the Muslim minority village area in Ranau regarding the attitude of teenagers who lack faith and are easily influenced by the culture of drinking alcohol practiced by the community in the area.In fact, the strong influence among minority Muslim youth stems from social interaction and the influence of the mass media.
Next, there is a lack of preaching atmosphere for the Muslim minority villages in Ranau.Menrut Informan due to the lack of a preaching atmosphere in the village area where the Muslim population is a minority in Ranau caused the Muslim population in the area to experience difficulty in pronouncing the Arabic letters leading to errors in reciting al-Fatihah.In fact, the Muslim community in the village also has little knowledge of the fundamentals of the Ain obligation.
Overall, the researcher saw that all the informants agreed that there was no rise of bad issues among Muslim minorities in Ranau district unlike other districts.Indeed, there are several villages in the Ranau district where the Muslim population is a minority, but oppression among them does not occur due to the existence of family relationships and good interactions among them (Suraya Sintang 2003: Budi Anto & Saidatul Nornis 2018; Nur Adira 2018).The issue that occurs only involves the attitude of individuals who are self-important and easily influenced by others.In fact, all the informants also agreed that there was no rise of major issues among the Muslim minority in Ranau as one of the uniqueness of the Ranau district that can live in harmony and accept each other even though the Christian population is more than the Muslim population.

The Challenges of Muslim's Minority
Living as a minority in one area is a huge challenge.This is because, the environment and behavior of a person's life will affect a huge impact in their life.In general, the challenges of minority Muslim's life include two types of challenges, namely internal challenges and external challenges.Thus, in this section the researchers will examine the challenges faced by the Sabahans living in villages where the Muslim population is minority.The research is based on interviews that have been conducted.The table below shows the results of interviews that have been obtain by the researchers Islam is hard to deal with, better be a pagan".

Difficulty obtaining allocations
There are few constraints for Muslim minority areas where they experience difficulties when applying for allocations to obtain funds for the construction of suraus and also matters involving the development of Muslims in the area.

Constraints in carrying out Islamic preaching
The atmosphere in one village, when the people in a village are all non-Muslims need to take care of their hearts, take care of their feelings because sometimes it also affects us to continue preaching more effectively.Causing a little problem in intensifying preaching M2 Lack of reading material Difficulty in obtaining learning materials for religious knowledge, especially in relation to the Quran, dhikr books, worship guides and so on.

Influence of social media
Can damage the mind and change a person's point of view causing them to express their point of view even if they don't know about the truth of a thing.Even they are too attached to what is shared through whatsapp groups without researching the truth of a matter.consequences will have an influence on the non-Muslim community and the minority Muslim community itself.Sharing in the mass media that aggravates Islam, fake news and many more will lead to a bad perception towards the minority Muslims in Sabah.This will put their situation in danger.Similar to this unrefined information ill lead to a wrong understanding of Islam especially for the minority Muslims themselves.This is due to the lack of understanding of religion which makes them easily affected by the things they share on social media.
Other than that, there are also external challenges which include the lack of provision for the Islamic religion, the constraint in order to carry out dakwah and lack of reading materials about Islamic religion.Difficulty in obtaining allocation for Islamic religious development projects will affect the Muslims.The provision is difficult maybe because of the minority factor, certainly will reduce the allocation for minorities especially in Sabah.Minority Muslims in Sabah also have problems in spreading dakwah.This is because the minority Muslims need to take care of the hearts of other religious communities in their area.Every movement for dakwah must be take to be more cautious with fear of causing displeasure among other communities.For addition, minority Muslims in Sabah also have problems getting religious book and literature.This is because, the sale foe religious books are very limited especially in the rural areas.Therefore, the Muslim Minority community in Sabah have a problem such as lack of reading resources expecially for the islamic booked.
In conclusion, the researchers saw that the internal challenges are the significant challenge for the lives of minority Muslims, while the external challenges make it worse and further undermines the lives of minority Muslims in Sabah.Internal challenges will lead to the personal formation or behavior, if it is bad, it will affect on the person.External challenges as result will further the distance of the Muslim community from the religion itself and will increase the difficulty in practicing the religion for themselves.

Conclusion
Overall, researchers saw the existence of issues among the people living in the Kadazandusun village in Ranau are not so bad.It can even be said that the Ranau is a peaceful district because the issue among minority and minorities in a village area is not so significant that it can affect the relationships formed in their community.This is because the people in the Ranau district are mostly family ties that allow them to accept each other.But there is no denying that in other areas that have been rising in the rise of issues that are severe among the Muslim minority community in the area.In fact, the challenges also about all areas where the Muslim population is minority.Therefore, the importance of further studies on this matter so that the welfare of all parties is maintained.

Funding
This article did not receive specific funding.

Declaration of Competition Interest
The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interest of personal relationship that could have appeared to onfluence the work reported in this paper.

Table 1
Issues in Minority Muslim Village Areas Christian majority village area in Ranau whose village head obliges all residents to participate in activities organized by the church even if they are Muslims.Even the atmosphere of Islamic preaching in the area is not very strong The table above is the result of the interview session conducted by the researcher with several respondents who are Muslim religious leaders in Sabah.Based on the results of the interviews above, the researcher will classify the discussion into two parts, namely: 1] Muslim's Minority Issues in Sabah and 2] Muslim's Minority Issues in Ranau, Sabah.