PAS claim that hudud law bears no consequence on non-Muslims is erroneous

PAS claim that hudud law bears no consequence on non-Muslims is erroneous

PAS asserts that its theocratic agenda is irrelevant to non-Muslims, but the party’s rhetoric is misleading as Muslims and non-Muslims alike have already been significantly impacted by the enforcement of stringent faith-based laws.

As reported by the New Straits Times (2 Aug 2012), Kota Baru PAS information chief Nor Azariza Mohd Alawi recently claimed that the implementation of hudud should not concern DAP because the law is meant exclusively for Muslims. It is ironic that this Kota Baru PAS official is blind to the unjust directives initiated by municipal and district councils in his own state which have affected non-Muslims.

Kelantanese severely impacted by stringent ultra-conservative laws

It is PAS is the one who needs an educational lesson on Hudud 101 as there have been many instances in Kelantan where PAS hudud law has been enforced on non-Muslims against their will.

A recent example involves the Kelantan Buddhist Association, in which they were required to incorporate Islamic motifs and designs into their building. This ruling is a clear encroachment unto non-Muslim identity and rights, as the PAS-led Kelantan government is depriving the association of their basic right of deciding how they want to design, not their place of worship, but their office! This type of petty government overreach demonstrates PAS’s relentless theocratic agenda.

Other instances of the PAS’s theocratic agenda in Kelantan include

• Pasir Puteh Land and District office issued a show cause letter to SJKC Kai Chih for organizing a mid-autumn lantern festival,
• Pasir Mas District Council ordering the Tao Tin Hu Keng Association ordering the organisers to prop up a curtain to block Muslims outside from viewing the celebration,
• fining non-Muslim salon owner whose employee wore a shirt with three-quartres sleeves,
• ban on karaoke and entertainment centres as well as licenced lottery sales,
• prohibition of pig-rearing farms to lessen demand for pork,
• requirement that Jawi script must be larger Malay words in signboards
• all businesses including Chinese shops start after 3pm during Ramadan, and the censorship of singers and musicians in concerts from Muslim women.

PAS has already admitted that it is determined to implement hudud law. DAP and PKR must answer to the public how they will be able to protect non-Muslims as the cases above prove. As reported by the New Straits Times (2 Aug 2012), Bandar Baharu assemblyman Yaakon Husin said that PAS’s agenda “does not depend on what DAP says”, asserting that the party will always push for hudud since it is one of its main priorities since inception. A vote for Pakatan is a vote for hudud law, thereby a loss of cultural identity and personal freedoms.

Senator Chew Lian Keng, JP
MCA Youth Federal Territory Chairman