Mujahid to continue convincing seven states to ban child marriages

De facto Islamic affairs minister Mujahid Yusof Rawa said his ministry will continue to convince the various state religious departments to ban child marriages.

At a press conference in Penang, Mujahid said he would start the ball rolling in 2020 as discussions via several platforms on the issue had ended for this year.

Mujahid said his ministry had conducted many discussions with several departments and came to the conclusion that the government of the day had all the authority to impose the ban.

"However, some states view child marriages as not something obligatory nor is it non-permissible to marry a minor," Mujahid said.

"It's in the middle so whether it is permissible or not depends on the situation," he added.

"In such situations, we need to use the maxim that the government has the authority to ban child marriages to protect the bigger interest of society, but some states do not have the will to comply," he said.

Mujahid was responding to news reports urging Putrajaya to intervene and deal with the seven states that have refused to ban child marriages.

These are Sarawak, Pahang, Terengganu, Perlis, Kedah and Kelantan, all of which are non-aligned with the Pakatan Harapan federal government. Negeri Sembilan under Harapan has also refused. 

Muslim women’s rights group Sisters in Islam (SIS) had on Nov 19 said the seven states needed to explain the rationale behind their decision.

SIS reminded them that policymakers, child psychologists, healthcare practitioners, economists and even religious institutions have spoken out on the harm of child marriages.

Mujahid said his ministry will raise the issue again via discussions with the Islamic Affairs Welfare Council which meets three times annually.

Those attending these meetings, chaired by the prime minister, include the menteri besar, chief ministers, religious affairs executive councillors and representatives from the National Islamic Development Council (Jakim) secretariat headed by Mujahid.

Mujahid said another platform where his ministry could convince the states to comply with the policy was by raising the issue with the respective state's Islamic Department directors.

"The next level will be to bring this issue is the Rulers Council and if the rulers decide to adopt the policy (of banning child marriages), then the states under them would have to comply," Mujahid said.

He added that with regard to the ban, his ministry was on the same page with the Ministry of Women, Family and Community Development headed by Deputy Prime Ministry Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail.

While many states saw the rationale behind the ban of child marriages, others lacked the will to do it via enactment of a law, Mujahid noted.

These often involve states which are not on the same political page as the federal government, he said.

"We find it difficult to convince them, we do not know whether this is due to politics or not," he added.

Mujahid was in Butterworth with his deputy, Fuziah Salleh to launch a series booklets entitled Rahmah, which explains the concept of compassionate Islam.

The booklets will be distributed to all government departments and educational institutions. - Mkini