This is the first time Brunei Darussalam has made it into a post of Rule by Hukum (a dubious honor to be sure). According to Reuters, Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah has stated that the country would enforce shariah criminal law. Shariah law famously includes harsh punishments, including stoning for adultery, but in theory these are balanced by the high burden of proof and significant discretion given to judges. The version of shariah implemented in Brunei will be much stricter than anything currently in force in Malaysia or Indonesia, so Brunei will likely bear closer scrutiny from human rights advocates and lawyers from now on (including Rule by Hukum).
Category Archives: religion
Shariah in Brunei (Brunei Darussalam)
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Filed under Brunei, criminal procedure, Islam, religion
Backpedaling on Allah (Malaysia)
A few weeks ago, I mentioned that a Malaysian High Court ruled that only Muslims could use the word “Allah” to describe God. Now, it seems, the government of Malaysia is engaging in damage control to mitigate the fallout of the decision. According to BBC, Prime Minister Najib has stated that christians in states of Sabah and Sarawak could continue to use the word “Allah”, particularly in bibles in the Malay language (coincidentally, parties from Sabah and Sarawak form a key part of the Barisan Nasional coalition). In essence, it appears Najib is attempting to add footnotes to the court’s decision after it has already been published. Given that courts in Malaysia are not entirely free from government influence, it will be interesting to see if his comments have any effect on future rulings on the issue.
Saying Allah (Malaysia)
Several years ago, I posted news about a case in which the Catholic weekly magazine The Herald attempted to use the word “Allah” to describe God. The government attempted to suspend The Herald and the magazine filed a petition for constitutional review. Initially, the High Court ruled in the magazine’s favor and struck the government’s action down. However, this week, the Court of Appeal overturned that ruling, deciding that the government acted within its discretion.
I had suspected that the original 2009 decision might signal a new willingness of the judiciary to challenge the government. Despite UMNO’s very narrow margin of victory in the general elections earlier this year, this does not seem to be happening. There is still one more level of appeal – the Federal Court – so this case might not be over. However, the Federal Court has tended to be sympathetic to the government, so it seems unlikely that it will overturn this decision.
Blaming the victim: (Myanmar/Burma)
Sadly, I’m starting to wonder if I should start a new section called “blame the victim” on Rule by Hukum. This week, two more Muslims have been arrested in connection to the communal riots in Okkan, near Yangon. One of the Muslim women allegedly accidentally bumped into a Buddhist monk, while another woman yelled at the monk for lying about the incident. The incident then caused a riot in which Muslim property was burned.
Of course, what happened to the monk is unfortunate. But the rioting against Muslims has gotten out of hand. Even more worrying has been the ineffective government response. According to The Irrawaddy, “Burma has seen clashes between Buddhists and Muslims in several states this year, but so far only Muslims have been imprisoned.” This year, the government has convicted more than 10 Muslims but no Buddhists.
At Wilson Center event in D.C., Pyithu Hluttaw Speaker Shwe Mann recently reminded the audience that the 2008 Constitution bans religious discrimination. One can only hope the government finds a way to put that sentiment into practice.
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Filed under Burma, courts, human rights, Myanmar, religion
Defending the faith
The Jakarta Post reported about a case in which a civil servant working with the Dharmasraya Regency Bappeda is on trial for expressing atheist views. The government is prosecuting him under the criminal code and Information Transaction Law for creating a Facebook group Minang Atheists. Moreover, the Constitution only guarantees religious freedom to the extent that individuals believe in a God.
Activists are worried that that the case has already gone too far. Sudarto, the director of the Center for Interfaith Community (Pusaka), argued:
The charges of blasphemy that brought against Alexander are based on ‘rubber articles.’ Their argument, which is exaggerated, is a failure of the Muslim community and our government to take care of other more important things.
Indeed, this is definitely selective prosecution at its worst. Alexander is already claiming he’ll convert back to Islam, but such a conversion sadly would be under duress.
Dominic J. Nardi, Jr. 
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