PUTRAJAYA, April 22 — The Federal Court today upheld the constitutionality of whipping, ruling in a split decision that the punitive measure does not violate the fundamental liberties guaranteed by the Federal Constitution.
Chief Justice Datuk Seri Wan Ahmad Farid Wan Salleh, delivering the majority judgment, dismissed the argument that the sentence was cruel, inhumane, or discriminatory.
He affirmed that the punishment does not breach Article 5, which guarantees the right to life and personal liberty, or Article 8, which ensures equality before the law, the New Straits Times reported.
The ruling stemmed from a legal challenge brought by three inmates who sought to have their whipping sentences set aside.
They argued through a review application that the punishment carries a risk of death and is arbitrary, thus violating their constitutional rights.
However, the nation’s top court distinguished whipping from a death sentence, stating that its purpose is punitive, not to deprive a person of their right to life.
“By their very purpose, penalties are designed to be punitive,” the chief justice said in the ruling.
“To isolate whipping as uniquely cruel or degrading is to ignore the reality that all forms of lawful punishment, to some degree, infringe upon the personal dignity and comfort of the individual.”
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