Khalid Samad warns of trigger-happy judges

Shah Alam MP speaks against increasing punitive powers before strengthening the shariah court system.

PETALING JAYA: Shah Alam MP Khalid Samad has warned against increasing the punitive powers of shariah courts before ensuring that the legal process is free from injustice.

Otherwise, he told FMT, Malaysia might see the emergence of what he called “hanging judges” who would impose maximum penalties.

“What you need to do is to make sure the courts are just, that the judges are well trained and that the whole spirit of wanting to establish justice is emphasised,” he said. “These are of utmost importance.”

He cited his own case last month. He was fined RM2,900 by a shariah court for teaching Islam without the requisite credentials.

“I was fined RM2,900 for talking about Gaza, just RM100 short of the maximum,” he said.

“There’s no inclination to find a person innocent unless proven beyond a shadow of doubt to be guilty. No consideration for arguments in mitigation.

“Unless you strengthen the whole court process, then don’t talk about increasing punishments.”

Khalid was fined in lieu of three months’ jail after being found guilty in December over a talk he gave at a surau in Kapar six years ago.

He insisted he was invited to the surau to speak about his trip to Palestine and that he did not give a religious lecture.

He said among the problems the shariah courts were facing were the presence of “some trigger-happy judges”, the vagueness of laws and disrespect for privacy and basic human rights.

“Look at the recent case where the husband and wife were caught by Jawi (the Federal Territories Islamic Affairs Department) for khalwat. They took a picture of the wife half naked and refused to accept the couple’s explanation that they are married. Is this Islam?

“All these things have to be put right before you can talk about increasing punishments.”

Khalid rejected a statement from PAS central working committee member Mohamed Fadzil Hassan that there was no intimidation or threat of social stigmatisation on Muslim MPs who would not support PAS president Abdul Hadi Awang’s private member’s bill to amend the Syariah Courts (Criminal Jurisdiction) Act.

“If you say that it is compulsory for Muslims to support the proposed amendments and say that we are not real Muslims if we don’t, then that is a form of intimidation for us Muslims, regardless of whether we are MPs or not,” he said. -FMT