KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 1 — The pursuit of justice must take precedence over laws and punishment in the implementation of the Shariah, renowned international Muslim scholar Dr Tariq Ramadan said today.

Speaking at the sidelines of an international conference on Islam, the Swiss academic was also critical of discussions on Shariah — which means Islamic laws and moral code — that centred on the execution of its laws.

“Shariah is the path towards peacefulness and Islamic principles. So in any country, our faithfulness towards Shariah is to start with justice, transparency, no corruption. This is what it means to be faithful to Shariah,” Ramadan told a press conference

“It’s not to start with punishing people; it starts with giving the rights of every single human being with dignity and justice.”

Ramadan’s view was shared by Opposition Leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, who was also present at the press conference and said justice is a more important goal of Shariah rather than to implement the controversial hudud penal code.

“How do you implement any aspect of the law if you don’t have independent judiciary, free media or freedom of expression, if you have obsolete, outdated laws?” asked Anwar.

“What do we mean by hudud? Is that actually the term? I have not actually seen it,” he added, admitting that the Kelantan state government has yet to provide him with the details of its proposed laws.

Kelantan had planned to convene a special state assembly sitting last month to initiate its plan to table in Parliament a private member’s bill to amend the Federal Constitution, which would subsequently allow it to enforce hudud, a strict Islamic penal code that includes punishments like amputation and death by stoning.

It was forced to postpone this after the worst floods in decades hit the state.