Revealing that she is an out and out politician, Women, Family and Community Development Minister Shahrizat Abdul Jalil has proved a saying so common among Indians - that in life one should never trust two things - the weather and politicians.

Her recent double-talk on the controversial Islamic Family Law Act (IFL) has reflected her insincerity in wanting to champion a cause that should rightfully be her task, of ensuring the discriminatory aspects of this Bill are dealt with.

The minister's recent stand in support of this Act has not only put off women folk in general, it has also attested what many have long thought of politicians - adept at paying lip service only.

The New Straits Times on Feb 10 quoted Shahrizat as saying that "the problem with some sections of the Act lay in their interpretations as different parties deciphered the law differently."

The minister stressed that the Act was Syariah-compliant and it "saddened her that the minds of the women in Malaysia have been poisoned into thinking that this piece of legislation is going to rob them of their money, property, dignity and rights."

Having made these remarks, three days later the minister was quoted by NST as saying that she was unperturbed by criticisms that she had done a flip-flop over this scandalous Act. This statement came about after she was lambasted by the Joint Action Group on Gender Equality (JAG).

'Back stabbing'

Shahrizat stood her ground on how she reacted to it when it was a Bill and after it had become law. She insisted that the problem lay with the way the law was interpreted and not her stand on the matter. Her famous words of wisdom were that "no law is perfect and there will always be some confusion and grey areas".

In Shahrizat's case, the move to throw support for this Act is clear. It is apparent that it was a bid to save her political career which means not letting anyone or anything stand in the way. The sad fact that the minister had obviously disregarded women's sentiments on an issue that infringes upon their rights raises alarm and caution to her genuineness in wanting to fight for women's issues.

This unexpected 'back stabbing' and perfidious display by the minister have certainly disappointed women's groups and the women community of this country. It seems no less a mockery of the day when the same minister who initially assured her people of justice has gone on to betray the very trust they had placed in her.

Claiming that the IFL is devoid of discrimination and was wrongly interpreted by the people, Shahrizat very cunningly saved her seat but at the expense of the rakyat by trampling any ray of hope she had offered them in times of adversity.

With her recent statement that all is well with the IFL Act, Shahrizat is far from fighting for justice. She has proved that come what may, a politician will always remain loyal, not to the people but to his/her seat, with no thought given to the hardships that people face.

Battle must go on

Now, with Shahrizat clearly having taken an unexpected stand on the IFL issue, the onus is on the women's groups including Sisters in Islam (SIS) to continue to fight this battle, very evidently without the minister's support.

For SIS, there is no time to sink into remorse over the entire IFL gamut. Instead, it needs to buck up quickly and once again clear the confusion that has come our way of what the IFL is all about and its discriminatory aspects.

This move is crucial especially after Shahrizat's statement that this Act does not pose any harm and threat to the interest of Muslim women. If the Bill was really as 'safe' as Shahrizat makes it out to be, why would there be an uproar in the first place? Was it a blind attempt by SIS to raise the various concerns in the Bill that prejudice Muslim women?

Also, the effort by SIS is necessary because the statement by Shahrizat has cast aspersion on its ability to understand and fight issues that concern Islam. It is unfortunate that Shahrizat's stand is at the expense of the faith women have laid upon SIS. For the sake of Muslim women and for the sake of Islam, SIS has to come out and clear the air, and once again take a stand on this issue.

Then there is the urgent need to 'free' Islam from being held at ransom vis-a-vis the Bill. Instead of turning the tables on this religion and seeing it as 'abusive', the wise step is to elucidate to the people what the minister is afraid of saying, that the Act truly discriminates women and that something must be done to stop this from happening.

Clearly, no minister will put her or his political career on the line and now we have come to see that Shahrizat is no different. The recent Cabinet reshuffle has not affected her and the minister is evidently taking many sighs of relief.

Step down

Never mind that a mother in Johor Baru is facing financial difficulty after her saving accounts were frozen by her husband who a month after that conveniently divorced her.

The case of housewife Zaidah Abdul Rahman, a resident of Selangor, was the first complaint involving Section 108 of the IFL Act (Johor) that was received by SIS. This Section allows the husband to obtain an injunction preventing the disposition of property by his then wife. Mind you, Zaidah's ex-husband, a businessman takes home a hefty RM30,000 each month.

A law in Johor since 2003, Section 108 goes against the grain of Syariah which stipulates that a husband has no right to his wife's property.

As for Section 107 which implies that a husband can get a court order to stop his wife from disposing her property, one wonders how truly will any transformation take place to clear the obvious standing, which is that certain provisions under the IFL Act run contrary to the Syariah.

If Zaidah's case is not lucid enough for Shahrizat to honestly acknowledge that there are certain defects to the IFL, then God save our country.

While laws are not carved on stone, they are supposed to be free of flaws, meaning they must be precise. For Shahrizat, a lawyer herself, to state that no law is perfect and will always contain confusion and grey areas is alarming.

Should our country's laws be a conundrum, it is a cry for the panic-button. And should ministers like Shahrizat instead of helping clear the confusion only worsen it, then the rakyat in all earnestness have this to say - step down.

JJ RAY started her career with a mainstream publication. A non-conformist, she soon saw the barriers that went up whenever, through her writing, she tried to make the world a home for one and all.