A recent statement by Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (Religious Affairs) Mohd Na’im Mokhtar sets alarm bells ringing.
In a Bernama report dated Aug 1, Na’im (above) said that he wanted to harmonise the syariah and civil laws of Malaysia, and “the ultimate purpose was to dignify syariah law to its rightful sovereign position”.
He said that one of the aims of the process of harmonisation was to elevate the position of Islam as the religion of the federation.
In response to the minister, does harmonisation mean that civil laws will be made syariah-compliant? If so, will the rights of non-Muslims be protected?
How long will it be before syariah laws reign supreme above federal laws? Going by the Islamisation of the nation, a process which was started in earnest in the 1980s, it won’t be long before clerics rule over the judges.
Did Na’im care to take into consideration the feelings of the people of Sabah and Sarawak? Will the terms of the Malaysia Agreement 1963 be honoured?
There will be much opposition to the harmonisation process and it will be challenged by both east and west Malaysians.
Our dual system of laws - civil and syariah, is not just conflicting enough as it is but also sends out mixed messages to the public.
Incidentally, what does the minister mean by wanting to elevate the position of Islam as the religion of the federation?
Isn’t the recognition that Islam is the official religion of Malaysia good enough? How much higher, and how much more “elevating” does Islam need?
Will the process of “elevating” Islam erode the constitutional rights of the people of Sabah and Sarawak?
In the Bernama report, Na’im hoped that harmonisation of the laws will eventually help to achieve the development of a community of people who stand up for equity and justice.
What nonsense is he talking about? Malaysians can stand up for equity and justice just by civil laws alone.
Syariah law often takes precedence
The rakyat enjoyed relatively harmonious relations until politicians placed heavy emphasis on religion and created a manmade mess in the country by making syariah laws more supreme than civil laws. To make matters worse, many (civil) laws are selectively applied.
For example, controversial Muslim preachers, including those from overseas, have made many incendiary remarks and whipped up racial and religious sentiments. Why was the Sedition Act not properly enforced?
Federal law states that no woman will be whipped and yet, a number of Malay women have been whipped under syariah law for sexual intercourse out of wedlock.
In 2018, in Terengganu, two women were whipped for having same-sex relations. In 2009, Kartika Seri Dewi Sukarno was sentenced to be whipped for consuming beer. The order was rescinded when her case created international headlines and caused Malaysia a lot of shame.
EDITOR’S NOTE: Syariah whipping is different from whipping under civil law, with the former being less severe than the latter. According to experts, syariah whipping is carried out with average intensity on a clothed body, avoiding the head, face, and private parts. The whipping should not cause any wound and should be distributed evenly on the authorised parts of the body.
Therefore, despite federal laws being supreme, we find syariah law taking precedence.
How will syariah law help the victims of rape when only the testimony of four Muslim, male eyewitnesses is allowed? How does the woman get justice?
Ask the many thousands of Muslim women divorced by their husbands and then failed by syariah law. Many were denied alimony, or maintenance for the children of the product of the marriage.
Bigamy is an offence in Malaysia and is punishable by a seven-year jail term and a fine. However, polygamy is allowed for Malay males. A man who wants to commit polygamy must treat each of his wives equally. However, syariah law rarely enforces this ruling strictly.
Islam a political tool in M’sia
Hindu mother M Indira Gandhi was denied access to her youngest daughter, whom her convert husband converted along with their other children and kidnapped in 2009. This is an example of Muslim syariah arrogance over the constitutional rights of a Malaysian and a mother.
After divorcing her husband, Indira was given custody of her children by the civil courts. So, how can the matter of forced conversion of minors be a matter for Syariah Courts?
Moreover, as a Hindu, she could not challenge the conversion as syariah law does not apply to non-Muslims. The case was definitely a matter for the civil courts.
In January 2018, the Federal Court delivered a landmark ruling and ordered the then inspector-general of police Khalid Abu Bakar to locate and arrest Indira’s ex-husband and return her youngest child to her. However, Khalid refused to execute the order, claiming confusion between civil and syariah laws.
By refusing to carry out the court’s orders, the IGP was denying Indira her constitutional rights. Many Malaysians also wonder if the then IGP was truly morally conflicted, or was he merely bowing to the will of his political masters.
If PAS president Abdul Hadi Awang alleges that bribery and corruption do not fall under hudud laws, then how will this crime be punished?
Despite earlier promises of politicians that non-Malays/Muslims will not be affected by syariah laws, many real-life cases have proven otherwise.
There is Islam, the religion which guides many Muslims on how to lead their daily lives, and then there is political Islam.
Sadly, Islam is not a personal faith in Malaysia anymore because it has become a political tool for politicians who use it to gain more power and political mileage.
Nai’im knows that the Federal Constitution is supreme. So, are his remarks mere political propaganda for use in the upcoming six state elections? - Mkini
MARIAM MOKHTAR is a defender of the truth, the admiral-general of the Green Bean Army, and the president of the Perak Liberation Organisation (PLO). Blog, Twitter.
The views expressed here are those of the author/contributor and do not necessarily represent the views of MMKtT.
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