Wrong, no ban on women syariah judges for Selangor, says Mais

The Selangor government has never placed any restrictions on women being appointed as syariah judges as accused by certain quarters, Selangor Islamic Religious Council chairperson Mohamad Adzib Mohd Isa said.

Instead, he said the fatwa (edict) issued by the Selangor fatwa council committee during its meeting on June 26-27, 2006, had only listed certain limits and scopes, which among others stated that women must not be appointed as syariah judges in cases involving hudud and qisas.

"That means women syariah judges can still be appointed for mal (non-criminal) cases, such as involving family property, marital issues and faraid determination," he said in a statement in Shah Alam today.

Mohamad Adzib said this in response to Wanita Umno chief Shahrizat Abdul Jalil's remark on Wednesday urging state fatwa councils to reassess their decisions on the appointment of women syariah judges.

Shahrizat was referring to a statement by chief syarie judge Ibrahim Lembut, who reportedly said that inconsistency in decisions by state fatwa councils despite the ruling of the National Fatwa Council, had hindered the appointment of women judges.

- Bernama