After Friday prayers on Dec 6, Mohd Affendi Awang will become the first person in Malaysia to undergo public caning at the Al-Muktafi Billah Shah Mosque in Kuala Terengganu.
The Terengganu Syariah High Court handed the 42-year-old widower the sentence for committing the offence of khalwat (close proximity with the opposite gender) for a third time.
Malaysiakini learned that a meeting to discuss the execution of the sentence had decided to permit only 70 people to witness the flogging.
“Of this, 10 will be picked by the mosque committee whereas the 60 others will have to obtain permission from the court (to be a witness to the caning).
“Those permitted (to witness the caning) will include assemblypersons, NGO representatives and others from related government agencies,” a source told Malaysiakini.
The source said that video recordings of the caning would not be allowed.
It is learnt that Affendi is now serving a six-month prison term at the Marang Prison because he was unable to settle the RM4,000 fine imposed.
Dehumanising act
Last week, Sisters in Islam (SIS) denounced the public caning as a “barbaric” act and rejected the argument that it would “educate” others.
SIS also criticised the selection of the mosque as the venue to mete out the punishment, noting that it should serve as a place of worship and reflection.
“To use a house of ibadah (worship) for such a dehumanising act is a profound violation of its sanctity. This is not justice. It is a degrading spectacle that strips an individual of their dignity in full view of an audience. It is a violent, shameful act designed to humiliate, not educate.
“It is nothing more than a tactic of humiliation for the individual and a morbid display for spectators.
“This stands in stark contradiction to Islam’s core principles of justice, compassion, mercy, and the preservation of human dignity,” it added. - Mkini
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