Posts
The former de facto law minister pleaded
with the Malay-Muslim majority to put themselves in a non-Muslim’s
shoes and to imagine if hypothetically, the law allowed a non-Muslim
parent to convert a Muslim child to Hinduism or Christianity without the
consent of the Muslim spouse.
“Sensible Malays are those who will not
do to others what they do not want done to them,” Zaid wrote in a blog
post today titled “What sensible Malays should do”.
“Today, Malays do not seem outraged that
a mother can’t have custody of her own son—even with a High Court
order—just because she is Hindu.
“Instead, Malays seem to be supportive
of the father who became a Muslim and took the son away illegally,
telling everybody of course that it was to prevent his son from being
converted to Hinduism,” he added.
Zaid questioned the mindset of many Malays who have taken the side of Muslim parents in inter-religious marital disputes.
“Do we have enough sensible Malays in the country? I’m afraid it’s a difficult question and, as a Malay, I feel embarrassed that I am unable to say a definite yes.”
“Do we have enough sensible Malays in the country? I’m afraid it’s a difficult question and, as a Malay, I feel embarrassed that I am unable to say a definite yes.”
Last week, a Hindu mother, S. Deepa, won
full custody of her two children ― a nine-year-old daughter and a
six-year-old son — at the Seremban High Court.
But her estranged husband, a Muslim
convert born N. Viran who now goes by Izwan Abdullah, had snatched the
boy from the mother two days later, insisting he too had full custody as
awarded by the Shariah Court, after he converted their children to
Islam last year without his wife’s consent or knowledge.
The police have refused to act on
Deepa’s abduction complaint against the child’s father, with
Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Khalid Abu Bakar citing the two
conflicting court orders as the reason.
Zaid said today that a generation ago, Malays would not have condoned such a “travesty of justice”.
“Malays of the past would have had no
difficulty accepting that changing the religion of a child requires the
decision of both parents (or guardians). It’s just common sense.
Malays of the past would not have
accepted the proposition that a single parent could unilaterally change
the religion of a child against the wishes of the other parent. Those
Malays had no difficulty following the law that enabled the child to
decide what his or her religion was upon reaching the age of 18,” he
added.
The former minister who had served in
the Abdullah administration told The Malay Mail Online earlier today
that the Federal Constitution was clear that the consent of both parents
is required to convert their child’s religion.
He also called the government “weak” for
not enforcing the country’s supreme law, pointing out that proposed
amendments to the Law Reform (Marriage and Divorce) Act 1976 and the
Islamic Family Law have yet to be tabled in Parliament since they were
mooted five years ago.
According to Zaid, Putrajaya had
proposed the amendments to ensure that a child keeps the religion they
were born with until they turn 18, if both parents cannot agree on
converting the child, and to ensure that maintenance and custody
disputes are handled in the court in which the marriage was registered,
even if one spouse embraces another religion later on.
“I am still Malay and I hope more Malays
will not be cowards like our leaders. They must speak up for justice
and the principle of fairness to all,” Zaid wrote on his blog.
-The Malay Mail
http://www.malaysiandigest.com/news/497415-do-we-have-enough-sensible-malays-zaid-says-unable-to-answer-a-definite-yes.html
For more information on Malaysian Family Law, please see our page at:
