The Selangor Islamic Affairs Department (Jais) has denied any involvement over video clips of youths purportedly committing khalwat (close proximity) in public areas - the footage has surfaced on the Internet.

Public relations officer Fakrul AzamYahya clarified that Jais does not have the right to film khalwat incidents because footage is not required for prosecution. The department will lodge a police report today.

Reports about video clips of young Malay couples in 'close proximity' first appeared in mStar Online which quoted Jais enforcement division deputy director Akmal Senin as saying the department records khalwat incidents but that the footage is viewed only in Syariah courts.

"The videos may be destroyed upon request of the prosecutor but some are retained by Jais," Akmal was quoted as saying.

However, in a statement yesterday, Jais director Mohammed Khusrin Munawi said the enforcement division does not own specific filming equipment or inventory.

"We don't need film or photos because it is enough (evidence) to find a man and woman in a lonely place or in a dwelling (if they do not have) any marital relations," he said.

When contacted today, Fakrul clarified that Akmal had been quoted out of context and that filming is only done during big raids such as the one conducted to recently in Petaling Jaya, on alleged promotion of the banned teachings of al-Arqam.

"We don't film people and we don't take still photos because we know khalwat is a sensitive and embarrassing matter," he said.

"We also fear that such evidence may be misused so our officers are not armed with a camera of any kind."

He explained that in Syariah law, evidence from four witnesses supercedes the need for video and photographic evidence.

Procedures to follow

Fakrul explained that Jais enforcers patrol in teams of at least two - the video footage appears to be the work of a man operating alone.

"Our officers don't (immediately demand to know) whether a couple is married or not (as recorded in the footage). We show our identification cards and introduce ourselves, before asking them anything," he said.

Several of the khalwat videos were uploaded on popular video site, YouTube by Mykakis who runs a website aimed as information for youths.

One recording shows a young Malay couple kissing in an alleyway while, in another, a couple holding one another are approached by the person filming them and who asks Suami isteri ke? (Are you married?).

When contacted, the Mykakis administrator would not reveal how the video clips were acquired.

"I cannot reveal my source, I got it from my friend. It did not come from Jais directly. I believe these clips originally came from Jais or the mosque authorities near Bangi," the administrator said.