Kelantan hudud tweaks meaningless without Parliament nod, PKR sec-gen says

(Malay Mail Online) – Kelantan’s plan to amend its 1993 hudud enactment will not bring the state any closer to enforcing the Shariah law despite the controversy and vitriol surrounding the move, said PKR secretary-general Rafizi Ramli.

The PAS led-state government has however postponed the state legislative assembly’s special sitting to table and pass amendments to the Kelantan Shariah Criminal Code Enactment II on Monday, amid a flood crisis that has left thousands of victims stranded across eight states.

But despite this, Rafizi pointed out that any amendments to the state enactment are inconsequential as the final arbiter on whether the state can implement the Islamic penal law is the Federal Constitution that can only be changed in Parliament.

“Legally, this does not mean anything,” he told Malay Mail Online when contacted, referring to the Kelantan state legislative assembly’s December 30 special sitting on hudud which has now been postponed to a later date yet to be announced.

“Even if the state assembly passes the amendment, it does not change anything as far as the implementation of hudud is concerned… the hudud equilibrium remains status quo, hudud still cannot be introduced,” the Pandan MP explained.

Rafizi pointed out that many PR leaders within PKR, DAP and even PAS were clueless about the proposed amendment plans on hudud, despite having asked for a copy of the document ahead of next week’s assembly sitting.

The secrecy with which PAS is forging ahead is putting its partners PKR and DAP in a quandary, he added. Both parties have been vocal in their criticism of their Islamist partners plan, especially the secular DAP.

“PAS’s refusal to share (the amendments) has complicated the relationship in Pakatan,” Rafizi said.

DAP is increasing the pressure on PAS to abandon its pursuit of hudud, with leaders alternately telling the latter to quit Pakatan Rakyat or for the pact to suspend ties with the Islamists over their insistence on enforcing the Islamic penal code.

PKR and DAP both maintain that hudud is not part of the PR common policy framework and PAS should not pursue its implementation as long as it remains a part of the pact.

Kelantan Mentri Besar Datuk Ahmad Yakob told Malay Mail Online yesterday that the postponement was because many state assemblymen were currently busy with relief efforts in their respective constituencies.

“It is a difficult time. We have postponed the sitting to a later date which will be announced,” he said when contacted on the phone.

The special assembly was to have allowed PAS to initiate its plan to table in Parliament a private member’s bill to amend the Federal Constitution, which would subsequently allow Kelantan to implement hudud law in the state.

In Islamic jurisprudence, hudud covers crimes such as theft, robbery, adultery, rape and sodomy.

Punishments for the crimes are severe, including amputation, flogging and death by stoning.