Gerakan Youth deputy chief Andy Yong wants an end to custody tussles as a result of conversion of religion and is calling for an immediate resolution to this at the Parliament session next month.

"Enough is enough. If they have the political will, the ultimate remedy will be to amend the constitution and relevant laws to put an end to this crisis.

"Do it in the coming Parliament session. They already know what the problems are and the amendments required," Yong said in a statement yesterday.

He said this in reference to the statement last week by Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Nancy Shukri that the government plans to amend three laws on child custody and property rights in cases where there is a change of religion by one spouse.

These are the Law Reform (Marriage and Divorce) Act 1976, Administration of Islamic Law (Federal Territories) 1993, and Islamic Family Law (Federal Territories) 1984.

Preparedness in dealing with the issue

Yong said previous statements on the protracted issue indicate that there is already preparedness in dealing with the issue.

He noted that even syariah lawyers have expressed their willingness to lend a hand in conversion cases involving non-Muslims.

"Previously, (Tourism Minister) Mohamed Nazri Abdul Aziz said the children of an estranged couple should remain in the religion of the parents at the point of their marriage.

"Current de facto law minister Nancy Shukri has said that the welfare of children is paramount and that the children should be allowed to choose their religion when they reach the age of majority.

"I strongly support all the above views," he said.

Yong said he is confident that sensible MPs from both sides of the political divide will agree on the reforms.

Over the years, there have been several cases of a non-Muslim spouse converting to Islam and obtaining custody of the children in the syariah court.

The other non-Muslim spouse would then seek custody of the children in the civil court, putting the two judicial systems on a collision course.

The separate judicial systems have often refused to step on each other's toes, causing such custody tussles to go unresolved.