Religious councils can determine child’s faith

Faith of a child, however, cannot be determined by the National Registration Department, says a lawyer.

PETALING JAYA: The National Registration Department had no jurisdiction in determining whether a child should be registered as a Muslim or otherwise.

However, it is up to the respective state religious council to determine a child’s faith, if there is an dispute, and the matter must be decided through the Syariah court.

“I agree that the NRD has no jurisdiction.  It is for the state Islamic council to decide, if one of the parent is a Muslim. Just because the parent is not practicing the faith does not make her less Muslim,” prominent lawyer Haniff Khatri Abdullah said.

He was commenting on a case in Kota Kinabalu where the High Court allowed a non Muslim father, Phuong Hiung Woei to state his son’s faith as Buddhist without documentation.

Judge Chew Soo Ho, who presided the case, ruled that the faith of a child under the age of 18 should to be determined by the parent.

Phuong is married to one Zeliha Bt Abd Karim and they have a son Phuong Jian Cheng.

The NRD had issued a birth certificate for Jian Cheng stating the child’s faith as Buddhist.  The Department subsequently issued another birth certificate that states Jian Cheng as Muslim.

Commenting on this matter, Haniff said Muslims had a communal responsibility that they cannot shy away from.

“This is why the Syariah courts should open up and resolve disputes,” he said, adding that both parents have rights under Islam, even if one is Muslim and the other is not.

“The Syariah officers should go out and explain to Muslims and non-Muslims alike that Islam also gives equal rights to non-Muslims,” he said.

This, he said was important in settling overlapping claims involving one Muslim and a non-Muslim parent.

Meanwhile when asked on the recent spate of cow slaughtering cases in schools, in conjunction with Hari Raya Haji, Haniff said it would be best to limit the practice to Islamic religious schools.

“Offering an animal to be slaughtered is an integral part of the religion.  However it does not need to be limited to beef.

“In the spirit of mutual respect for our Hindu brothers, the slaughtering should be confined to Islamic religious schools,” he said.

He said this in relations to two cases of schools slaughtering cows in conjunction with the Aidiladha celebrations on Tuesday.

One case was reported in Puchong and another in Bangi.  The incidents caused unease among Hindu parents and school children.

Cows are considered sacred in the Hindu faith.