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Thursday, April 17, 2014

Hudud : "..Malaysia is doomed" - TAN SRI MOHD SHERIFF MOHD KASSIM

The following comment written by Tan Sri Mohd Sheriff Mohd Kassim appeared in The Star today. My comments follow.
Poser over PAS tabling of hudud bill

THE possibility that a Private Member’s Bill could be tabled in Parliament to allow hudud to be introduced in Kelantan does not speak well for the politics of the country.

All Muslim MPs , including those from Umno, will be faced with a delicate situation whether to vote for or against the bill or to abstain.

One big issue they have to consider is having Syariah laws exist side by side with secular civil and criminal laws in the system of justice.

The other is the practical issue of implementing parallel laws, with one system for Muslims and the other for non-Muslims.

We are already seeing the muddled justice system at work. There is the living example today of the police left undecided how to deal with the abduction of the son by the father who is a Muslim convert, despite the earlier ruling by the civil court to grant custody of the children to the mother.

The police should do the correct thing – find the man who abducted the son or arrest him for attacking the wife, as this is clearly a violation of the law. But the police appear to be saying that since there are two laws , they don’t know what to do. Obviously, this again brings up the question of which law has supremacy over the other.

If this is how our laws are going to work, then it’s going to destroy this lovely country.

Once this kind of justice is seen by the world to be typical of the whole system, Malaysia is doomed.

The trigger point is when Malaysians start to have no confidence about the justice system,foreigners will then take the cue that this is a dangerous country to visit or do business with

Tourist arrivals and foreign investment will start to dry out and once these key drivers of the economy start to decline, we can forget about achieving the 2020 target of becoming a high income country.

Is economic growth that important? My answer is yes, definitely. 

I would say that in this day and age, it is the most fundamental requirement for keeping the country together and preventing it from becoming a failed state. Economic growth which provides better jobs and higher incomes for families, coupled with caring government policies which safeguard the people’s welfare and give them hope for a better future, these are what the rakyat want most from their Government.

Malaysia has a system of laws and institutions that is working well for the country and the economy and which has been effective in creating a framework for peace and security in our multiracial society.

True, there are several areas that need improvement to bring it up to world standards, especially on issues of democracy, human rights and freedom of expression.

Although there are increasing demands for change and occasional street demonstrations to put pressure on the Government, this is not a concern to the public, to businesses, investors and tourists as they know it’s a normal democratic practice everywhere for people who want to express their opinion to sometimes go on the streets to attract world attention.

However, if the country has laws based on religion, this will raise alarm among our people and foreigners as they know that opposition to Islamic laws is strictly forbidden in Muslim countries, with heavy punishment including the death sentence

This will create anxiety and fear as the people will now have no say in making any proposals for change as all powers of legislation will be in the hands of the ulamas, not their elected representatives.

Ulamas are known for their intolerance for any challenge to their fatwas, which is an affront to our democratic rights to disagree and to object. 

To liberal Malaysians who form the silent majority, justice denied is a source of instability and it’s a sure sign of future trouble and instability in the country.

We have seen in many Muslim countries that when fear and uncertainty set in, the rich start taking their money out to safer places and the brightest and most useful citizens migrate with their families to other countries for the sake of their children’s future. Many countries have fallen into decay because their best people have deserted their country of birth.

In a multiracial nation like Malaysia, religion can be a divisive factor in nation building if it is used against the wishes of the majority. 

I believe the majority of Malaysians want the Government and the lawmakers to concentrate on the issues that concern us deeply - peace and security for the country and higher quality of life for the people.

Malaysia has developed to its present status by being closely connected with the outside world, not just in terms of trade and investment but also through our openness to progressive ideas from the West and East.

We want to maintain the values and institutions that characterise a progressive country and we therefore ask our leaders to give higher priority to the wider interests of the nation when tabling any new laws in Parliament. Accordingly, Parliament must weigh the costs and benefits to the nation before making its decision on the Private Bill in favour of hudud laws.

Our racial and cultural diversity has turned this place into one of the most dynamic and forward-looking countries in the world. We do not want to allow all this strength and vitality in the people to be sapped away by worries and uncertainties about the future.

TAN SRI MOHD SHERIFF MOHD KASSIM

Kuala Lumpur

My comments.  This is a very simple yet astute observation by Tan Sri Mohd Sheriff Mohd Kassim, the former KSU of the Treasury, CEO of Khazanah Nasional for nine years and many other appointments. I would like to analyse his comments point by point. Here goes :

1. Can we table a private members Bill in parliament in support of imaginary pet unicorns? If no why not? Because it will be a waste of time. Imaginary pet unicorns do not exist. However if someone still insists, then shouldnt we at least have free and open discussion to determine the debate about imaginary pet unicorns before we debase the majesty of our Parliament with trivia like imaginary pet unicorns?

The same applies for hudud. The hudud is different according to mazhab (sectarian interpretation) and according to feqah (theological jurisprudence). There are no standardised shariah or hudud laws anywhere in the world. There is NO complete written down set of shariah and hudud laws anywhere in the world. So with all these differences and all this "non existence", how do we know the hudud is even god's law? Who said so?

So the possibility that a Private Member’s Bill could be tabled in Parliament to allow hudud to be introduced in Kelantan without debate and discussion of the hudud itself is evidence enough that the ignorant (jahileen in Arabic) are calling the shots.

2. How can you have two systems of justice with different standards of justice? In over 1400 years of history, many Muslim women have suffered rape. Women who are raped and become pregnant MUST BE prosecuted as adulterers in the hudud court. They must prove that they were raped. If they cannot prove they were raped, they can be stoned to death. This is the hudud law.

But in over 1400 years of "Islamic" history, there has not been even one case where a Muslim woman who was raped was able to produce FOUR MALE WITNESSES OF GOOD CHARACTER who willingly witnessed her being raped - this being the gold standard for the rape victim to free herself of the counter charge of adultery.

Yet this is touted as hudud law or shariah. There is no such thing as FOUR MALE WITNESSES to prove or disprove the charge of adultery (zina) in the Quran.  The Quran says FOUR witnesses are required if a charge of indecency (fahishatan) is made against chaste women (muhsanaati). So in the literal Quran it is the other way around - the accuser must bring forth FOUR WITNESSES against the women.

So before anyone wants to implement their version of hudud, shouldnt there be an intellectual debate about what exactly is hudud and sharia? And what is wrong with free and open discussion? Isnt it part of the democratic process to discuss and debate laws first before we implement them?

And isnt it barbarism to say that those who dont agree with your interpretation of anything shall be fined or thrown in jail? What type of uncivilised behaviour is that?

3.  It is true that the Police are already confused. In any case at all - not just in the present case - if the Civil Court had awarded the mother custody of the children earlier, how can a shariah court that made a ruling later supersede the civil court. Lets say the father waited a few more years to file his custody case with the shariah court. Say by that time the daughter is married (say at age 17 - which is ok according to shariah) to a non Muslim. Then can the shariah court still grant the father custody where the father can ask for his daughter's marriage to a non Muslim to be nullified? Nullifying marriages has happened before. Many times. And this is justice?

A country or a society will be as good as the laws it makes to govern itself. And it must implement those laws fairly and efficiently.  But if the laws do not make sense or if they are based on a perverted sense of justice then whether the laws are implemented fairly or not - that society is certainly doomed.

Let me quote another analogy. If you pass ridiculous or unjust laws then you are doomed. There is no such thing as a fair implementation of unjust laws.  
4.  I agree with Tan Sri Sheriff  that this is "going to destroy this lovely country."  Malaysia is doomed.

I agree that "foreigners will then take the cue that this is a dangerous country to visit or do business with." 

But what will the jobless, unemployable classes say? The serbanis and the unhygienic village intellects who cannot hold a normal job but who hold so much "religious" influence in this country? What will they say? They will say 'So what?' So what if the foreigners dont invest? So what if the tourists dont come? We dont need them. We are going to heaven and they are going to hell.  If we need rain, we can pray for rain. We dont need them. This is the Club of Doom. Economy is a fundamental requirement? To the serban is a fundamental requirement.  Economy can go to hell.

Gambar hiasan saja ye. Jangan marah ye.

5.  Tan Sri Shariff points out that Malaysia still has "several areas that need improvement to bring it up to world standards, especially on issues of democracy, human rights and freedom of expression."

This is a moot point. It does expose the casual hypocrisy of many, many Malaysians especially the middle classes. How come few people or no one spoke up when Kassim Ahmad was charged in court for expressing an opinion? What democracy, what human rights and what freedom of expression are you talking about when your have Religious Enactments which can arrest, fine and jail people whom you do not disagree with?  

And everyone keeps quiet. This is casual hypocrisy - a truly Malaysian sickness.

6.  Now I have a question for the silent majority in this country - the non Muslims and especially the Muslims. I am referring to the middle classes, the educated classes, the professional classes.

I agree with Tan Sri Sherriff that :

i. if the country has laws based on religion, this will raise alarm among people
ii. opposition to Islamic laws is strictly forbidden in Muslim countries
iii. with heavy punishment including the death sentence
iv. people will now have no say in making any proposals for change 
v. all powers of legislation will be in the hands of the ulamas
vi. ulamas are known for their intolerance 
vii. an affront to our democratic rights to disagree and to object. 

But what are the "liberal Malaysians who form the silent majority" doing about this? The silent majority, the middle classes are the culprits here. They are keeping quiet while the half educated, semi literate, unhygienic, village intellects are bulldozing yet to be proven 'laws of the arabian desert' as our laws. They are going to destroy our country and you are doing nothing about it.

Here may I take a minute and salute Tan Sri Mohd Sheriff Mohd Kassim  for putting his thoughts down on paper and having it published. I believe there are millions of people who think in the same way but they are just too uninvolved to do anything. Just go on with your lives and let these serbanis invade your lives little by little. Let the country go to hell.

In conclusion - let me say that it is pointless talking to the serbanis. They are of low intellect, prone to using violence and force to settle differences with people they do not agree. Their violence is either mob violence of the street or State sanctioned use of force - which is also violence.  Going at this pace it is a question of time before the first suicide bombers appear on our streets.

It is the middle classes, the silent majority who must stand up and reclaim the country from the serbanis. There is a huge strength that is with the silent majority, the educated classes and the middle classes which the serbanis do not have. This is intelligence. 

By asking questions, by asking for dialogue, by asking for open discussion, by asking for proofs you already have intelligence on your side. The use of brains.

In complete contrast :
The serbanis will absolutely deny any questioning. 
They will deny any chance for free and open dialogue. 
They will reject any type of free and open discussion. 
They HAVE ABSOLUTELY NO PROOFS FOR WHAT THEY SAY
This means they have no intelligence.
They are stupid.

And this is what sustains them - stupidity and making threats of hell fire and making threats of throwing you in jail. That is all that they have.

Do they have any proof for what they say? No they dont.

And you - the middle classes, the educated people, the silent majority want to give them license to destroy the country? Think again.

Playing with fire

2 comments:

  1. I agree with the observations of the Tan Sri. On my part, I have been quite vocal on Dato Din's blog...voicing my personal, observations too. Malaysia is all f#$%&* up. The silent majority MUST speak up before it's too late. Let's all play our part peacefully.

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  2. I am glad that I gave up practicing law after more than 2 decades in Malaysia. There is no law but a bunch of people with their own interests. UMNO needs Islam to stay in power as the only steward of the religion-protecting Malays. PAS-is there like the Taliban who want Islamic laws, so that the Malays will forever be beholden to the Ulamaks, otherwise they won’t have a job. There is MIC, MCA and the other Barisan components that have all their property, children, and investments outside the country but continue to use Malaysia as a facilitator for business-they don’t see it as a country anymore-just a place to rape and make money. So they really don’t care.
    At the end of the day, the middle class that is really non-existent anymore in Malaysia is slowly moving to poverty, being oppressed by bad governance and corruption. There is no rule of law or rather no one knows what the Malaysian law is-the judiciary has been corrupt for many years. I see only DOOM.
    We all have seen when Shariah law takes over the country begins the cycle of UNDEVELOPMENT. Look at all the Muslim countries-they are in a mess! Brunei royalty is fortifying their position as Brunei is losing its oil revenues in the next decade of so. Its economy is collapsing as they cannot sustain all the free perks they have been giving their citizens ( I saw that on Fareed Zakariah’s GPS). Unless that Malays stand up and allow for democratic institutions to take over, I can see Malaysia on the downward spiral.
    Even Muslims are leaving!

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