Islamic conversion of minors absolutely illegal

 

In his recent TikTok video, a Chinese Muslim convert preacher - Firdaus Wong - was accused of legitimising an unlawful conversion of underage non-Muslim schoolchildren to Islam.

In a four-minute 12-second video, Firdaus (above) allegedly claimed that there was no problem for one to convert to Islam where age is concerned.

As expected, his alleged statement has stirred uproar and public disquiet, particularly among non-Muslim parents.

Several human rights organisations have also jumped onto the bandwagon, raising alarm over what they claim to be an unethical method purportedly vouched by Firdaus to convert underage schoolchildren to Islam.

As far as the Global Human Rights Federation (GHRF) is concerned, such unethical actions depicted in the TikTok video would indirectly teach and encourage children to lie and engage in religious activities behind their parents’ backs.

In the meantime, Penang Mufti Wan Salim Wan Mohd Noor has called on parties involved in an alleged attempt to convert non-Muslim school students to Islam to consult legal experts. After all, every state in the country has their own legal advisers and experts. I tend to agree with the view mooted by Penang mufti.

All are subject to the Constitution

Assuming Firdaus really made such a statement, I must say his purported statement reflects a shallow understanding of the existing law, explicitly enshrined in our Federal Constitution.

Let me add this. Under our existing system, all of us - Muslims or non-Muslims alike - are subject to the supreme law of the land. Some constitutional experts argue adhering to the Federal Constitution is akin to adhering to the social contract.

The Quran explicitly says being faithful to a contract would be considered a religious obligation (see Quran 5:1). Prophet Muhammad faithfully adhered to the terms of the hudaibiyah treaty with the non-Muslims despite the treaty containing a slew of lopsided and unfair terms.

The late ICJ judge (a non-Muslim) considered the divine command for Muslims to honour the agreement as reflective of the principle of Pacta sunt servanda under international law.

Be that as it may, all players need to bear in mind that all of them are strictly guided by the same, common playbook - the Federal Constitution. They cannot be selective in relying on the black letters and spirit of the Constitution.

Unfortunately, there are some elements among some religious adherents in the country that tend to follow their own playbook. More often than not, they tend to destroy some constitutional firewalls whose primary aim is to maintain the peace and security of our multicultural and multi-religious society.

The law is clear

Some Muslims, unfortunately, seem to think that it would be completely justified for them to convert underage non-Muslim schoolchildren to Islam on the pretext of upholding the religion. Hence, any underage non-Muslim schoolchildren, in their view, must be allowed to convert to Islam, come what may!

That seems to be the essence of the accusation against Firdaus.

While Islam may have its own view on the conversion of underage non-Muslims to Islam under hukum syarak, Muslims in this country, however, have a constitutional duty to adhere to and respect Article 12(4) of the Federal Constitution, which provides for parents or guardians to determine the religion of a person below the age of 18.

The relevant provision reads: “For the purposes of Clause (3), the religion of a person under the age of 18 shall be decided by his parent or guardian.”

While our courts seem to have different opinions in construing the term “parent” in Article 12(4) as to whether it should be interpreted as plural or singular, the fact remains that any conversion of a person under 18 must obtain parental consent. Period!

Apart from Article 12(4) of our apex law, Section 5 of the Guardianship of Infants Act equally provides, inter alia, the consent of parents in the upbringing of minors. - Mkini

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MOHAMED HANIPA MAIDIN is former deputy minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (law).

The views expressed here are those of the author/contributor and do not necessarily represent the views of MMKtT.