Kelantan approves hudud Bill, disappointing PAS’ partners

KOTA BARU — The Kelantan State Legislative Assembly yesterday unanimously passed amendments to the Syariah Criminal Code, paving the way for the controversial implementation of hudud laws in the Malaysian north-eastern state governed by Parti Islam Se-Malaysia (PAS).

The move immediately drew sharp responses from PAS’ partners in the three-party opposition coalition Pakatan Rakyat (PR), with the Democratic Action Party (DAP) saying its leaders would meet on Monday to decide whether it would continue to be part of the pact.

Both the DAP and Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) maintained that the hudud issue was never agreed upon by PR as part of its common policy framework.

“I am disappointed ... It is a question of being sincere, loyal and truthful to the common policy framework, which has been the basis of our partnership in the past six or seven years,” said DAP parliamentary leader Lim Kit Siang yesterday.

PKR’s leaders, led by president Wan Azizah Wan Ismail, also issued a statement criticising PAS just as the Bill was passed unanimously yesterday. “While PKR respects the right and stance of the Kelantan state government to table this enactment, we would have preferred if the state government had also respected the consensus made earlier with PR,” read the statement.

PAS’ secretary-general Mustafa Ali said Kelantan’s plan to implement the Islamic penal code was not something new, even if it was not on the opposition coalition’s common agenda. “We have been saying this for a long time and it is clearly understood,” he said.

“But we are still (part of) PR ... and we will continue to stay with PR,” he added, urging the DAP not to make any decision that could break up the pact.

All 48 Kelantan assemblymen voted unanimously yesterday to pass the Bill.

The next hurdle for PAS is likely to be to seek Parliament’s approval to amend the Federal Constitution to allow hudud to be incorporated into Kelantan’s Syariah laws.

Wrapping up the state debate on the hudud enactment yesterday, Kelantan Chief Minister Ahmad Yakob said PAS needed only a simple parliamentary majority to get hudud implemented in the state by amending a law governing the scope of the Syariah courts and not the Federal Constitution.

However, the PR pact has insisted that an amendment to the Federal Constitution is required.

While PAS failed to get support in 1993 when it first introduced the Bill, it believes it can muster the numbers to tweak the Federal Constitution this time, after the ruling party United Malays National Organisation (UMNO) indicated that it would back the move.

Political analysts believe UMNO’s motivation for openly backing its rival party’s controversial plan is politically motivated. “It does appear that at a strategic level, baiting PAS with an opportunity to implement hudud introduces a wedge in PR at a point in time when (the ruling coalition) Barisan Nasional is going to be unpopular with voters when the goods and services tax comes into effect,” said Mr Ibrahim Suffian, who heads independent pollster Merdeka Center.

In its statement yesterday, PKR leaders accused UMNO of politicising hudud in a bid to break up PR. AGENCIES