.jpg "A dose of the Pfizer-BioTech Covid-19 vaccine is pictured at the UiTM Hospital in Sungai Buloh March 2, 2021. u00e2u20acu201d Picture by Yusof Mat Isa")
KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 31 — In an attempt to prevent his wife from getting her Covid-19 shot, a Muslim man in Terengganu went as far as telling her he would divorce her by reciting lafaz taklik.
Malay daily Berita Harian reported the couple to be in a long-distance relationship and that the wife had received the first dose of her Covid-19 vaccine on August 24 without her husband’s knowledge.
Fearful of her husband’s declaration, the woman, a housewife, contacted a Syarie lawyer for legal advice to find out if her husband’s declaration will hold up in an Islamic court and dissolve their marriage.
Syarie lawyer Maryam Wafda Kamilen told the newspaper that she had been contacted by the woman and had since referred her to the Shariah Court for further legal advice.
“During our phone conversation, the woman’s husband warned her against getting vaccinated, and should she do so, he would perform taklik.
“His words worried her enough that she contacted me for legal counsel and to determine if the declaration was valid or not,” Maryam was quoted as saying.
The term lafaz taklik refers to the public profession by a husband during the marriage ceremony, in which he formulates a condition as part of his promise to protect his spouse.
The husband who is found to have breached the taklik means the woman is able to seek a divorce if she so chooses, though she must first prove that her husband has breached the taklik.
Maryam said she has received at least three to four similar cases related to Covid-19 since the government started ramping up the national vaccination campaign.
“Our advice to them is to file the case in the Shariah Court as quickly as possible,” the lawyer was quoted saying.
