YOURSAY | ‘Those charged with upholding the sanctity of the constitution are not doing a good job.’

Amanah wants 'new court' for unilateral conversion cases

ACR: Parti Amanah Negara (Amanah), don't make us wonder whether you would turn out to be PAS 2.0. Hello, the civil court is where both Muslims and non-Muslims have a right of audience.

The so-called vacuum was partially addressed yesterday when the apex court ruled that divorce and custody proceedings of civil marriages (though one spouse may have later converted) would be determined by civil courts.

What the apex court did not rule, though this has been the bane of most of these 'inter-religious' tussles, is when the converted spouse unilaterally converts one or more minor children.

The apex court was silent on this though it went on to determine which child should be with which parent.

There is no need for a new court to address this. Clarify the law to make it an offence for a single parent to convert a child below 18 from a non-Muslim union.

Asitis: As if there is not enough confusion with two courts (civil and syariah) now they are proposing to add another court to the circus. Actually, we already have the solution - it's called the federal constitution.

Unfortunately, those who are charged with upholding the sanctity of the constitution are not doing a good job. And this is the problem.

And this problem will not go away no matter how many courts you create.

Daniel: I beg to differ. There is no vacuum as the legislation has been there all this while.

The aberration is caused by the civil court abdicating their duties and powers and cowardice of the bench who makes decisions tied to their religious beliefs instead of the spirit of the law and swayed by the sheer weight of religious expectations.

The solution is simple - just say it as it is. Don't beat around the bush making suggestions like this and adding to the confusion to the already over-employed and redundant bureaucracy.

Thequest: Thanks to former prime minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad, we know that special courts can be effective and impartial.

Some years back, during the Abdullah Ahmad Badawi era, the special court, which had been established earlier through Mahathir's initiative (see 1993 constitutional amendments), even ruled against a ruler.

Gggg: What special court? Civil court doesn't bar a Muslim from litigating. The problem here is that the marriage took place under Hindu rites.

As a Hindu, the last rites of cremation must be carried out by the eldest son. Now, she has been deprived of her religious rights.

Harapan winning Putrajaya is Anwar's only hope for freedom

Headhunter: Let the truth be told. Anwar Ibrahim is a political prisoner and as far as the BN is concerned, a dangerous one.

If he's freed, it could spell the end of BN and PM Najib Abdul Razak. Not only that, all those who are complicit with Umno’s alleged corruption will be hauled to court to face the music. We all know that.

His case is not unlike those of exiled Philippine politician Benigno Aquino, Jr (who was the leader of the opposition to Ferdinand Marcos) or South Africa’s Nelson Mandela.

They all fear him and that's not a good thing for him. Even after he has served his sentence, what's to stop them from repeating the same to jail him further?

Bumiputhran: I agree that Anwar is a tiger, caged or not. His name alone should be the beacon for the opposition. His name is the symbol for hope to liberate the country from the abyss of moral decadency of the ruling Umno Malays.

Very soon, an imminent full pardon by the Agong heading the Pardons Board will release Azilah Hadri, the convicted criminal of a heinous murder of defenceless woman in the middle of night begging for her life in a jungle tract, from death row. Azilah with his colleague Sirul Azhar Umar showed not a shred of mercy.

Compare their crime with the 'crime’ of Anwar, an alleged consensual sexual act between two adults where all fingers point to a political conspiracy.

A convicted murderer gets pardoned while the act of alleged sexual conduct is denied of the same compassionate consideration.

I say use the name ‘Anwar’ to stand for liberation and justice.

Nehru: PKR is weak as it has no direction. Its deputy president, Azmin Ali, and company want PAS as a fall-back for support in future situations such as the Selangor MB crisis.

Not even one senior PAS leader attended Anwar’s one-year jailing gathering. PAS is already with Umno and yet PKR still depending on it. Pakatan Harapan must move on and form new alliances.

Writer Hazlan Zakaria is right. Success in GE14 for Pakatan Harapan is a dream at the moment and reality may do worse.

Roguekiller: Indeed, the Pakatan Harapan leadership is heading in all directions except the right one. The leader is voiceless, the other so-called leaders are flexing their muscles as and when they like.

Hazlan has correctly put that to give freedom to Anwar, Pakatan Harapan must win the 14th general election (GE14) or else he will remain where he is for the next four years.

Shouting and cursing and so on have fallen on deaf ears, so, what's the point? Time is short, in another two-and-a-half years the moment of truth will arrive.

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