Point to Ponder: Desi Is Aghast by This Incident

I have always preached that RELIGION should be a PERSONAL ENCOUNTER between any individual and his/her GOD, however one deems Him to be...

Howver, sometimes some Malaysians can become over-zealous, and that's when trouble starts,for the OTHER parties, not for the Zealot.

Desi will spend the whole of Sunday ruminating on the "caning" to be meted out -- prays that some ONE will intervene and spare the woman, and the husband, the pain. She had already paid the fine of RM5,000, pleaded guilty: What More Do You Want, Mr/Mrs/Ms Justice?

From The Malaysian Insider~~~

Outrage over caning for model

KUALA LUMPUR, July 23 — A model who was ordered to be caned by a Pahang syariah court for consuming alcohol in public wants the court to expedite the sentence, which has stirred up a controversy.

If her sentence is meted out soon, it could be the first time that a man or a woman is caned under Islamic law.

Women, Family and Community Development Minister Datuk Seri Shahrizat Abdul Jalil expressed shock at the ruling while another woman MP from the Islamist party PAS said she was surprised that whipping of women was sanctioned under syariah law.

Muslim lawyers, however, dismissed the criticism, saying they were a challenge and an insult to the Kuantan syariah court.

The woman at the centre of the controversy, Kartika Sari Dewi Shukarnor, 32, told reporters she wanted the ordeal to be over soon to move on with her life.

“I will accept this earthly punishment, let Allah decide my punishment in the hereafter... The court has yet to tell me when the sentence will be carried out, so I would like to ask them to hasten it.

“I truly respect the court's decision... I admit that it's my offence and not that of others, it's not the offence of my parents, not the offence of my other family members,” a teary Kartika told reporters in her home town in Perak yesterday.

She was drinking beer with her husband in a hotel in Cherating, Pahang, two years ago when she was caught by Islamic enforcement officers. She pleaded guilty last year.

She was fined RM5,000 and sentenced to six strokes of the rotan by the Pahang Syariah High Court on Monday.

The mother of two, who is married to a Singaporean and is a Singapore permanent resident, paid her fine on Tuesday and decided not to file any appeal.

Earlier this year, two others, a 22-year-old waitress and a 38-year-old man, were ordered to be flogged for drinking in public. But both have lodged appeals against their sentences, which means Kartika would be the first person to be caned if her sentence is meted out.

Her husband, who is in Singapore, told The Straits Times that he was unhappy with the sentence.

“As a Muslim, I have the right to teach her and punish her myself because I'm her husband. That's what Islam taught us,” he said, adding that he wanted to remain anonymous.

“I don't understand why they decided to punish her. I don't think it's fair but let's leave it to God to judge the actions of those people who punished my wife.”

In Malaysia's dual-track system, women convicted under its civil jurisdiction are not caned. But the caning for women under the syariah system is less harsh.

Kartika's father, Shukarnor Mutalib, 60, said the punishment by the court was according to the Islamic laws in Malaysia and that the incident had taught his daughter a useful lesson.

But Shahrizat, the Women, Family and Community Development Minister, did not feel it was a fair and just punishment when she expressed shock at the decision, adding that her ministry was following the case closely.

Titiwangsa MP Lo'lo Mohd Ghazali, who is also head of the women's wing of the opposition PAS, said that punishment should educate and not cause hurt.

Responding to the criticism, Syariah Lawyers Association deputy president Musa Awang said the judge had made the decision based on provisions of the law.

“Any unhappiness with the syariah court decision must be made via procedures provided by law,” he said.

“Although the two leaders' intention was to defend women, they should understand the whipping methods according to Islam,” he was quoted as saying in a statement yesterday.

He said the rotan used in caning women should not be more than 1.22m long and not more than 1.25cm thick. He also highlighted the “moderate force” used. — The Straits Times