The Penang Legal Aid Centre (LAC) has questioned why a syariah lawyer did not apply for the khalwat (close proximity) convictionof a Christian migrant worker to be quashed.
LAC consultant Cecil Rajendra said the lawyer, Wan Faridulhadi Mohd Yusoff, made “the wrong move” in the affidavit he filed last Thursday to appeal the case in the syariah court.
Rajendra (left), who is holding a watching brief, said Indonesian migrant worker Halimah, a Christian, has the social right to ask the syariah court to quash the case and declare it “null and void”.
This right complies with Section 74 of the Islamic Administration Enactment (Penang) 2004, which states that the syariah courts has no jurisdiction over non-Muslims, he added.
"I feel very strongly that Halimah should not even sign that affidavit, since she is a Christian,” Rajendra said when met at the launch of a charity tea dance for the Penang Spastics Home.
"You do not submit to a court that has no jurisdiction over the case. If you continue to play this legal game, you are giving them a lot of face, which is nonsensical.
“It is a wrong move because the enactment is very clear that the syariah courts, lower or higher, have no jurisdiction over a non-Muslim," he told reporters.
Like many Indonesians, Halimah, 42, a reflexologist, goes by only one name.
Detained in December 2011
She was detained by the Penang Islamic Religious Department officers on Dec 11, 2011, during a raid at her workplace on Jalan Seang Tek, Penang.
Halimah was convicted and sentenced by the syariah court under Section 27(b) of the Penang Syariah Criminal Offences Enactment in May 2012, after she pleaded guilty.
Her conviction carries a RM3,000 fine and/or two weeks jail, or two months’ jail in default of the fine.
Halimah has a baptism certificate, family registry and a statement from the Indonesian Consulate to prove that she is a Catholic.
Her case came to light on March 18 when the Syariah Court of Appeal dismissed the prosecution’s preliminary objection against her appeal.
Rajendra said syariah lawyers, who are also Penang Bar Council members, had objected to his intervention in the case.
“But I don't give a damn,” he said, adding that he was not questioning the Islamic legal system but instead wants it to enforce its own law under Section 74.
When contacted, Wan Faridulhadi said he filed the affidavit to reply to the prosecution’s claim that Halimah can only appeal her sentence but not her conviction.
He denied being unhappy with Rajendra’s involvement, saying, “Anyone can intervene as long as he or she has an interest in the case.”
Since there is no avenue in the Muslim court to quash her conviction, Rajendra said, Halimah could therefore sue the prosecution for wrongfully charging her.
"She is trapped by the system that is totally unjust, which victimises her as a woman, a migrant and a minority,” he lamented.
“It is a ridiculous situation. Halimah's boss, a non-Muslim, could not even post the bail of RM3,000 for her. She found a Muslim to do it although the money came from her pocket."
Rajendra expressed surprise at the deafening silence of politicians and the Bar Council for failing to show any support for Halimah, saying "they are afraid" of taking up public issues.
LAC consultant Cecil Rajendra said the lawyer, Wan Faridulhadi Mohd Yusoff, made “the wrong move” in the affidavit he filed last Thursday to appeal the case in the syariah court.
Rajendra (left), who is holding a watching brief, said Indonesian migrant worker Halimah, a Christian, has the social right to ask the syariah court to quash the case and declare it “null and void”.This right complies with Section 74 of the Islamic Administration Enactment (Penang) 2004, which states that the syariah courts has no jurisdiction over non-Muslims, he added.
"I feel very strongly that Halimah should not even sign that affidavit, since she is a Christian,” Rajendra said when met at the launch of a charity tea dance for the Penang Spastics Home.
"You do not submit to a court that has no jurisdiction over the case. If you continue to play this legal game, you are giving them a lot of face, which is nonsensical.
“It is a wrong move because the enactment is very clear that the syariah courts, lower or higher, have no jurisdiction over a non-Muslim," he told reporters.
Like many Indonesians, Halimah, 42, a reflexologist, goes by only one name.
Detained in December 2011
She was detained by the Penang Islamic Religious Department officers on Dec 11, 2011, during a raid at her workplace on Jalan Seang Tek, Penang.
Halimah was convicted and sentenced by the syariah court under Section 27(b) of the Penang Syariah Criminal Offences Enactment in May 2012, after she pleaded guilty.
Her conviction carries a RM3,000 fine and/or two weeks jail, or two months’ jail in default of the fine.
Halimah has a baptism certificate, family registry and a statement from the Indonesian Consulate to prove that she is a Catholic.
Her case came to light on March 18 when the Syariah Court of Appeal dismissed the prosecution’s preliminary objection against her appeal.
Rajendra said syariah lawyers, who are also Penang Bar Council members, had objected to his intervention in the case.
“But I don't give a damn,” he said, adding that he was not questioning the Islamic legal system but instead wants it to enforce its own law under Section 74.
When contacted, Wan Faridulhadi said he filed the affidavit to reply to the prosecution’s claim that Halimah can only appeal her sentence but not her conviction.
He denied being unhappy with Rajendra’s involvement, saying, “Anyone can intervene as long as he or she has an interest in the case.”
Since there is no avenue in the Muslim court to quash her conviction, Rajendra said, Halimah could therefore sue the prosecution for wrongfully charging her.
"She is trapped by the system that is totally unjust, which victimises her as a woman, a migrant and a minority,” he lamented.
“It is a ridiculous situation. Halimah's boss, a non-Muslim, could not even post the bail of RM3,000 for her. She found a Muslim to do it although the money came from her pocket."
Rajendra expressed surprise at the deafening silence of politicians and the Bar Council for failing to show any support for Halimah, saying "they are afraid" of taking up public issues.
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