THE MALAYS ARE CONFUSING THE NON-MALAYS

So this is a very important first step and since Pakatan Harapan is most outspoken about this matter then Pakatan Harapan should take the lead to push for Malaysia’s Constitution to be amended to clear up the confusion and ambiguity and specify very clearly that Malaysia is a Secular State.

NO HOLDS BARRED

Raja Petra Kamarudin

Selangor creates history with appointment of two female Syariah High Court judges

(The Star) – Selangor created history Monday when two women were appointed Syariah High Court judges – a first for Malaysia – here.

Judge Noor Huda Roslan, 40, and Judge Nenney Shuhaidah Shamsuddin, 41, received their official letters of appointment from Selangor’s Sultan Sharafuddin Idris Shah during a ceremony at the Istana Bukit Kayangan here.

Seven other women also received their appointment letters as Syariah Lower Court judges.

Selangor Syariah chief judge Datuk Dr Mohd Na’im Mokhtar said that the appointments showed that Sultan Sharafuddin was concerned about Syariah Court matters.

”Tuanku sees the role that can be played by women in executing justice effectively, especially in Selangor.

‘We hope that the appointments will refute any criticism by certain quarters that justice is not being served for them,” he said in a statement.

However, Dr Mohd Na’im noted that the appointments had nothing to do with gender, and the two had capabilities that qualified them for the job.

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Today, HRH the Sultan of Selangor appointed a few more Syariah Court judges for the Selangor Syariah Court (READ ABOVE). Yesterday, the Sultan announced that zakat has to be paid to the Lembaga Zakat Selangor (LZS) and not to individuals or other parties. The impression being given here is that matters concerning Islam — Islamic Laws and the Syariah Courts included — come under the Sultan.

If that is the impression you get then you are right. And that is always how it has been since Merdeka (and long before that). In fact, this was a system set up by the British colonial masters who even drafted the Federal Constitution of Malaya (now Malaysia) and included in that Constitution that Islam is the religion of the Federation and that Islam comes under the Rulers.

Now, to be very clear, the British did not say precisely or explicitly that the newly independent Malaya was going to be a Theocratic State or a Secular State. The Constitution more or less left it vague or ambiguous and it is more implied than specified or stated. But the problem with all laws that are vague or ambiguous is that it is left open to interpretation and in most cases precedence will determine that interpretation.

But then we have Tunku Abdul Rahman who is quoted as having said that the British intended for Malaya to be a Secular State while Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad announced that Malaysia is already an Islamic country and hence we do not need PAS to try to turn Malaysia into an Islamic State.

Those who support a Secular State will always quote the Tunku while those who support a Theological State will always quote Mahathir. Who you quote depends on where you stand and both ex-Prime Ministers are considered worthy of being quoted.

Then there are those who say that Islam is a state matter and comes under the Rulers of their respective states (for states that have Rulers) while others say that the Rulers only have power over family matters while criminal matters come under the Federal Government and is subject to Act of Parliament.

And this is the whole issue regarding the Kelantan Syariah Amendment Bill that the PAS President is bringing to Parliament as a private member’s bill and which many are opposing.

Assuming this is true (that the Rulers only have power over family matters while criminal matters come under the Federal Government and is subject to Act of Parliament), why are Muslims arrested, prosecuted and sentenced (by the state religious authorities) for crimes such as drinking, gambling close proximity, extramarital sex, and so on?

Are not these crimes and is it not the state that is enforcing these laws?

So you see, what Malays (meaning Muslims) say and what they do are contradictory. They talk about freedom, civil liberties, human rights, democracy and whatnot, which they say must be defended to the death, and then they tell us we cannot drink beer or enter into a gay partnership.

Malays must first decide what they want. If not how can they expect the non-Muslims to understand what is going on? Muslims themselves say that Hudud is a barbaric law (READ HERE). And then when non-Muslims like Lim Kit Siang oppose the Syariah (thinking that Syariah means Hudud) we call him kafir (which in essence is correct since, according to the Qur’an, all those who reject Allah, Prophet Muhammad and the Qur’an are technically kafir).

The Malays are so undecided as to what they want. And this is confusing the non-Malays. So who is to blame here when the non-Muslims are quite ignorant about their own religion and hence would understandably be even more confused about Islam?

Now, do the Malays want Malaysia to be a Secular State or a Theological State? At the moment many people are saying many things but there is so much ambiguity that it is not quite clear what Malaysia is. Merely talking about what the Federal Constitution is implying is not good enough. It has to be clearly stated or specified, not just implied.

It is like implying we are married by living together and sharing the cost. That still does not make us legally married until we actually get married.

So the first step has to be to amend the Constitution to specify that first and most crucial point — is Malaysia a Secular State or a Theological State? Why are Malays purposely leaving that vague and why are Malays too scared to get that clarified, specified and properly stated in the Constitution? Once that is done then a lot of confusion can be cleared up.

For example, once the Constitution says that Malaysia is a Secular State then the government or religious authorities can no longer tell us what we can and cannot do. Muslims can even leave Islam and enter into civil marriages or live as unmarried partners (straight or gay). That is no one’s business other than the business of two consenting adults.

So this is a very important first step and since Pakatan Harapan is most outspoken about this matter then Pakatan Harapan should take the lead to push for Malaysia’s Constitution to be amended to clear up the confusion and ambiguity and specify very clearly that Malaysia is a Secular State.

It is no use for Pakatan Harapan to keep screaming and complaining and yet at the same time refuse to address the most important issue in this whole debate — which is to no longer just imply but to specify in no uncertain terms whether Malaysia is a Secular State or Theological State.

Will Pakatan Harapan do this or are they going to just keep screaming and complaining without really doing anything about the problem? Maybe Pakatan Harapan does not want the problem solved so that they can keep using this as a political issue every time they want to campaign for the Chinese and Indian votes plus votes from Sabah and Sarawak.

If that is so then the Pakatan Harapan people are most dishonest and devious and are endangering Malaysia by causing tension between the Muslims and non-Muslims. And this is most irresponsible of Pakatan Harapan when all they need to do is to specify what type of state Malaysia is and yet they will not do that.