SIS Forum goes to Federal Court to quash 'deviant' fatwa

Woman’s rights group SIS Forum has gone to the Federal Court in a final bid to quash a fatwa issued by the Selangor religious authorities labelling the group as deviants.

The organisation and one of its co-founders Zainah Mahfoozah Anwar filed an application on April 14, seeking leave from the Federal Court to appeal against the Court of Appeal’s dismissal of its challenge against the fatwa.

In civil cases, litigants must obtain leave before they can proceed with appeals to the Federal Court.

On March 14, the appellate court, in a 2-1 majority decision, dismissed SIS Forum’s appeal to quash the fatwa.

They pursued an appeal to the Court of Appeal after their judicial review was dismissed by the High Court on Aug 27, 2019.

The fatwa, gazetted by the Selangor state government on July 31, 2014, declared that SIS Forum, any individual, as well as groups that adopted the deviant ideologies of liberalism and pluralism, were deviating from the teachings of Islam.

The fatwa also directed that any publications containing liberal and plural views of Islam should be banned and confiscated as well as directed the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) to censor websites that go against Islamic teaching and Syariah laws.

The Federal Court has fixed May 15 for case management for the leave application appeal.

In the notice of motion requesting leave, the group proposed 10 questions of law for the Federal Court to decide.

Among them - whether a fatwa, once published in the Gazette under sections 48(6), Administration of the Religion of Islam (State of Selangor) Enactment 2003, is a form of subsidiary law and/or delegated legislation.

Another question is whether the civil court has jurisdiction to judicially review the making of a fatwa, or its publication in the Gazette under section 48(6) of the Enactment, once it is so gazetted on the grounds generally available for the review of subsidiary or delegated legislation.

- Bernama