KOTA BARU, May 29 — Enforcing hudud won't curb crime, Chinese community leaders in the heartland of Kelantan say, adding that the strict Islamic penal code will instead trigger bigger conflicts in the justice system and jeopardise ties between the Malay-Muslim majority and minorities of other ethnic and religious backgrounds.

Making up just four per cent of Kelantan's 1.6 million population, the Chinese community have so far seemed reticent in voicing their opinion on the rollout of hudud, touted by the PAS state government as an effective weapon in the chronic battle against crime.

But not any more. Earlier this month, the Kelantan Chinese Assembly Hall (KCAH) held an emergency meeting and signed a memorandum expressing their vehement objection to hudud enforcement, which was then delivered to the state government on May 14.

“We are indeed against hudud. We read in the papers that the PAS committee on hudud was saying that the Chinese had been silent on it. That is because they could not see our dissatisfaction. They did not know,” KCAH president Oie Poh Choon told The Malay Mail Online in a recent interview here.

Kelantan Chinese Association president Oie Poh Choon.

Oie said the Chinese vernacular papers had been reporting their disapproval of the Islamic law that prescribes amputations and death by stoning for crimes ranging from theft and robbery to adultery, but observed that the executive councillors who sat on the state government were probably in the dark because they did not read those dailies.

In their memorandum, the Chinese argued that hudud is unsuitable to be carried out in a multi-cultural society. They added that its rollout would further fragment the country's judicial system, which they noted was currently divided into civil law applicable to all and Shariah law, which governed only Muslims.

“We feel that hudud will not be able to reduce crime rate. Crimes are actually happening because the authorities have not been strict enough, they have not done their job well enough,” said Oie.

His office was burgled just a few days earlier, Oie related. And the thieves had boldly carted off the office safe, rather than attempt to break the locks to take its contents. He gestured to a space near his desk where the safe had stood, the darker coloured patch announcing to the naked eye its absence.

The police had not been very helpful to him, he stressed. When Oie dropped by to get his statement recorded, the station told him to come at another time. He did not return.

“Hudud will not solve the crime problem, because in the end you would still need enough police manpower to implement hudud,” Oie said.

Earlier this year, state news agency Bernama reported a spike in property crimes such as house break-ins and vehicle theft in Kelantan, even though the overall state crime rate dropped from 24 per cent in January to 4.27 per cent in February.

Property crimes recorded the highest number of cases during the period, higher by 6.16 per cent compared to other types of crimes, including violent crimes which recorded 4.4 per cent, Bernama reported Kelantan deputy police chief Datuk Mazlan Lazim saying on March 21.

The senior policeman said the force was looking to recruit 500 more police volunteers, and had extended the ceiling age to 55 years, to fight crime.

Even so, Kelantan's Chinese community, who largely live in the state capital, have been stepping up their anti-hudud rollout campaign.

A petition has also been launched to illustrate the community’s disapproval, led by the state government’s biggest critic on hudud — Kelantan MCA

According to Kota Baru MCA chairman Tan Ken Ten, the reception had been overwhelming. The party succeeded in collecting 1,200 signatures within two hours after circulating the petition at three hawker centres in the city.

Kota Baru MCA chairman, Tan Ken Ten.

“PAS is mistaken. For us, the Chinese community, we are surely against hudud… It is as if hudud will create a new set of laws. We find this will create a conflict,” added Tan.

The vocal MCA politician had run in the Kota Lama state seat last year against PAS’ Datuk Anuar Tan Abdullah, a Chinese-Muslim, but lost by a 6,618-vote margin.

But Tan insisted there are real fears that hudud, should it be carried out, will intrude into the lives of non-Muslims, despite the PAS government's assurances.

As crime cuts across racial and religious boundaries, the Chinese leaders voiced concern over how the law would be dealt with in regards to non-Muslim victims, witnesses and perpetrators.

“We are worried that one day this thing will fall to those from other races, from other religions as well,” Oie said.

The Chinese in Kelantan have already felt the sting from Islamic codes of conduct that have crept into the local council regulations over the decades.

In 2012, Chinese hair salon owners kicked up a fuss that made national headlines after the Kota Baru Municipal Council sought to enforce a 1991 gender segregation by-law introduced by the PAS state government to transform the Kelantan capital into a so-called “Islamic city”.

More recently, the local authority made it a requirement for businesses in the city to incorporate “Islamic” design elements in newly-constructed commercial buildings, which the Chinese seemed to have reluctantly accepted.

“Not that we don’t have a problem with it, but if we don’t follow it, our plans will be rejected when we submit them,” said Tan.

Oie said the non-Muslim religious groups and non-Malay ethnic groups were unhappy with the by-law as they preferred to showcase their cultural heritage in their architecture.

However, he also said the local council has so far accommodated requests from non-Muslims to be exempted from the ruling.

“We don’t really agree to it, but what can we do?” Oie asked.