Thursday 25 December 2014

PAKATAN RAKYAT PARTNERS SHOULD CUT TIES FROM PAS OVER THE HUDUD BILL





Pakatan Rakyat will have to SUSPEND WORKING TIES WITH PAS if the Kelantan government goes ahead with its plan to amend the Shariah Criminal Enactment that will pave the way for hudud implementation in the state, a DAP lawmaker said.

Puchong MP Gobind Singh Deo said PR which consisted of PKR, DAP and PAS must demonstrate its commitment to uphold the common policy framework, even if it meant suspe...nding or cutting ties with any partner who threatened the spirit of the loose coalition.

"We must inspire confidence and demonstrate our commitment to the common policy framework in PR. We must be firm and show that it is something which cannot and must not to be taken lightly," Gobind said in a statement today.

Kelantan is proposing changes to the law ahead of its plan to table a private member’s bill in Parliament to facilitate implementation of hudud in the state.
Hudud covers crimes in Islamic law such as theft, highway robbery, adultery, alcohol consumption and sexual intercourse outside marriage.

Those convicted could face punishment such as amputation of limbs, flogging and death by stoning.

Gobind, who is also DAP's legal bureau head, referred to a report quoting Kelantan Deputy Menteri Besar Datuk Mohd Amar Nik Abdullah who said PAS changed its focus on Islamic state to welfare state and allowed Christians to use "Allah" in their worship, but "still, we did not win Putrajaya" in 2013.

He also cited Amar's statement that hudud was more important than capturing Putrajaya and that the Islamist party was prepared to even sleep with arch rival Umno to see it through.

Gobin said this was by far the clearest admission by PAS that they were never serious about their role in PR and that they were never committed to its common policy framework.

"It appears that all this while PAS weighed in on PR to win Putrajaya so that they could set up an Islamic state and implement hudud even with Umno, if DAP and PKR disagreed to do so," he added.

He said PAS was going ahead to table an amendment in the Kelantan state legislative assembly on December 29 despite being reminded numerous times by PKR and DAP that they cannot do this without the consensus of all parties.

"It is very clear that the bill does not have the backing nor support of PR. More importantly, it strikes against the common policy framework of PR," he said, adding that PAS was therefore forcing a split.

He said PAS knew fully well objections by the DAP and no discussion nor agreement had been reached with DAP and PKR on the matter.

Gobind reminded PAS that all component parties in PR were dutybound to defend the common policy framework, which formed the basis for the coalition's gains in the 2008 and 2013 general elections.

"If ever Pakatan Rakyat is to remain a political force to be reckoned with, one which the people can trust and will respect, we must now demonstrate our commitment to uphold the common policy framework," he added.

Constitutional lawyers have repeatedly said it is almost impossible to implement hudud under the present political, democratic and constitutional framework.

Lawyer Syahredzan Johan said the entire system would have to be overhauled if the Islamic criminal law was to replace the penal code.

He said any attempt to introduce hudud was a mere political game to demonstrate to Muslims which party – PAS or Umno – was more "Islamic".

December 24, 2014



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