PETALING JAYA, Sept 4 — The public caning imposed on two alleged lesbians by the Terengganu Syariah Court will negatively colour public perception of Islam, said the Lawyers for Liberty rights group today.
LFL executive director Latheefa Koya said homosexuality was not a crime in Islamic penal law and was at most an offence under tazir that encompasses minor offences not covered under hudud or qisas.
“Islam emphasises heavily on the concept of mercy and the protection of the privacy and dignity of individuals.
“Ironically, this thirst for punishment is affecting Islam more negatively than any sinful act can,” she said in a statement today.
She also criticised the Terengganu Syariah Court for claiming the caning did not “hurt” the women or that the privacy of the offenders had been “protected” as they were allowed to use private doorways to enter and exit the court premises.
“It is an utterly ridiculous statement when you take into account that the punishment was carried out in the presence of 100 people which included curious bystanders and the mental anguish that these women must have suffered through this ordeal,” she said.
Latheefa also questioned the legality of the corporal punishment as caning could only be administered to prisoners under the Prison Act 1955 and Prison Regulations 2000.
She echoed suggestion that the Shariah court in Terengganu exceeded its authority by imposing the physical punishment on two citizens who were not prisoners at the time when the law restricts such sentences to those currently incarcerated.
Yesterday, two women found guilty for attempting to have lesbian sex were caned six times in public at the Terengganu Syariah Court as around 100 people watched the punishment.
The punishment drew worldwide condemnation, with federal minister in charge of religious affairs Datuk Mujahid Yusof Rawa saying public presence during the sentencing should be reviewed.
