The Malaysian government has set 31 December as the dead-line for individual states to harmonise Sharia (Syariah, Islamic law) with the constitution to iron out the differences between Quranic rules and the country’s constitutional framework.
For many observers, the deadline is too short, but it has reignited a debate over the place of secular and Islamic law in a country deeply divided along ethnic and social lines.
On Sunday, Islamic Affairs Minister Mohd Na’im Mokhtar pledged to address the matter before the end of the year to ensure a more orderly relationship between the two forms of law.
He plans to do so in cooperation with Sultan Sharafuddin Idris Shah of Selangor, who chairs the National Council of Islamic Religious Affairs.
A special committee headed by a former chief justice is also taking part in the process, which began last year, with the aim of assessing how to extend legislative powers in this sensitive area.
This is the more pressing since Malaysia’s Supreme Court invalidated 16 laws adopted by the north-western state of Kelantan, covering various offences punishable under Sharia, such as sodomy, sexual abuse, possession of false information, drug and alcohol addiction, as well as how courts should apply the laws.
According to the court, the state cannot make Islamic laws in areas that come under Malaysian federal law even though state legislatures can adapt it to reflect local religious views.
While the minister’s statement started a debate over the timing to achieve the goal, others note that such a topic raises questions about the very identity of the country.