Condemning Mais fatwa not the same as disrespecting Sultan, SIS stands by call for review

Sisters in Islam (SIS)‎ today denied they were challenging the authority of the sultan with a judicial review of a fatwa against them.

Their statement comes on the heels of the Selangor ruler's warning to Muslims not to criticise his decrees.

SIS said that‎ fatwas had been reviewed and amended in the past, and what they were doing was not unprecedented.

"Fatwas can be reviewed, and it has been changed. Look at the fatwas on Amanah Saham Nasional and Amanah Saham Berhad in Selangor.

"First they said the unit trust funds were haram (prohibited). Then it was changed to ‘tidak halal’ (not permissible.

"So was that a violation of the sultan's authority?" Zainah Anwar, SIS founding member, told a press conference today in Kuala Lumpur.

The fatwa against SIS, which was gazetted in Selangor in July, declared that the NGO and any other similar organisation that promoted "liberalism and pluralism" were deviant to the teachings of Islam.

The Sultan of Selangor, Sultan Sharafuddin Idris Shah, urged Muslims not to criticise fatwas, especially those released in Selangor, as he ‎was personally responsible for approving the edicts.

"A fatwa that is issued in Selangor is only valid after it has obtained my approval and consent," said the sultan ‎in his speech at the Multaqa Selangor Sultan event in Shah Alam today.

"I urge Muslims to not be so quick in criticising the fatwas that are issued without fully comprehending them."

‎Zainah today explained that a judicial review was not a religious issue, but a constitutional one.

"It is related to our right to freedom of expression, freedom of association and freedom of religion."

She also said that the fatwa, issued by the Selangor state, encroached into federal authority as it ordered the Malaysia Multimedia and Communications Commission (MCMC) to restrict social media websites that violate Islamic teachings and laws.

"How is MCMC supposed to obey that fatwa? Is MCMC going to be charged for violating the fatwa if it doesn't block any of those websites?

"Does the federal government understand the enormity of this fatwa?" said Zainah.

Datin Paduka Marina Mahathir, who sits on SIS's board of directors, said they were simply seeking an opportunity to defend themselves.

"We are questioning the process of the making of the fatwa, as we were not informed (of it) either before the fatwa was passed or after it was gazetted and made into law.

"How would we know if we were contravening the law if we don't know about it? And we found out about it by accident, too," she added.

She said the group had to act quickly once they discovered the fatwa, as a judicial review had to be filed within three months after it was gazetted.

"If we hadn't filed it, we'd be considered deviant now."

According to section 13 of the Shariah Criminal Offences (Selangor) Enactment 1995, anyone who contravenes a fatwa that is in force can be fined up to RM3,000 or jailed for up to two years.

SIS executive director Ratna Osman said it was a basic right in Islam to seek clarification, and they had sought explanations from Mais and the Selangor Mufti before applying for the judicial review.

"We wrote a letter to them to get more information on the fatwa which we learned about accidentally, since we have now been declared deviant.

"There is nothing wrong in asking. I feel that we are respecting the history of Islam, not straying from its teachings." –TMI