PETALING JAYA: DAP’s Ngeh Koo Ham has found an unlikely ally in a former MCA vice-president following his call to include non-Muslim constitutional experts in a committee studying the conflicts between shariah laws and the Federal Constitution.
Ti Lian Ker said he had himself suggested to religious affairs minister Na’im Mokhtar for non-Muslim jurists or legal experts to be included in the special committee at the Dewan Negara earlier this month.
He said he had mooted such an idea after senator Nik Abduh Nik Abdul Aziz claimed that civil laws ran in conflict with the shariah laws and, therefore, should be amended to comply with the latter.
Ti said Nik Abduh’s proposal ran contrary to the spirit of the constitution, which was the supreme law of the land, and warned that a special committee comprising only Muslim legal experts may result in the civil laws being subjugated by shariah laws.
When it came to matters that may infringe the rights guaranteed under the constitution, he said, there was a need to rope in experts, irrespective of their religion, to provide a broader perspective.
Ti said excluding non-Muslim experts may lead to “blindspots”, referring to areas that could be overlooked, especially when it came to how the law would impact non-Muslims in a multiracial and multi-religious society.
The former deputy unity minister said interfaith-custody battles and the moral policing of non-Muslims by enforcement officers were proof that these legal conflicts must be resolved as it could spark polemic in a multiracial society.
“It is, therefore, vital that we obtain the views from both sides – shariah and constitutional experts – to get a more comprehensive picture and a jurisprudential view of some of the issues we are dealing with.
“Only then can we come up with the best solutions,” he told FMT, adding that there was growing concern among non-Muslims that shariah law would encroach in their lives despite the freedoms guaranteed under the constitution.
Earlier today, Ngeh said he noticed that all members of the committee, which were announced on Nov 21, were Muslims.
He said it was important to appoint non-Muslim constitutional experts to the committee so that non-Muslim views about proposed adjustments to the constitution would also be taken into account before a proposal for any change in the law was made.
He also said it was imperative to have a representative from the Malaysian Bar on the committee as it is a statutory body established to ensure that proposed laws are fair and just.
Ti said Ngeh hit the nail on the head in terms of the law being fair and just.
“By including non-Muslim constitutional experts, justice would not only be done, but seen to be done. This is in line with the legal philosophy of the shariah, which is about justice and fairness to all,” he said. - FMT
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