The New Apartheid

Technorati tags: Politics, Zulkifli Noordin, Islamic State, Constitutional Amendments, Apartheid

Zulkifli Noordin - remember him?

Yes, he's the guy that was part of the mob that disrupted the Bar Council forum in August last year, went missing (unfortunately not abducted by aliens), then reappeared... Yeah, you know the guy Walski's talking about.

Apparently the MP for Kulim Bandar Bharu has big aspirations of creating a New Malaysia. But it's not the kind of new Malaysia that Walski (and he's quite sure many others, too) would want.

Having been tipped off by the intrepid Cybernetic Remote Autonomous Para-roaches (or C.R.A.P. for short, on loan from HENN), which continually scour cyberspace seeking out all kinds of interesting dirt, Walski came across the member of parliament's blog, particularly one posting done very recently. Like, yesterday recently.

The Riding MP, as he calls himself on the blog, in a posting dated February 16th, has disclosed a list of 20 motions planned to be presented in the current sitting of Parliament.

If some of these motions actually lead to the amendments in the Federal Constitution that Zulkifli Noordin's gunning for, 2009 will be remembered as the year Malaysia started its sordid slide to becoming the New Apartheid of the 21st century.
(the proposed amendments, the implications, and more, in the full post)

Walski has reproduced some of the intended motions here (with English translations in this color). He will leave it to you to decide whether these are in the spirit of a united Malaysia that we all aspire, or the polar opposite. Emphasis is from the original text, with any additional color emphasis by myAsylum.

1. Zulkifli Bin Noordin (Kulim Bandar Bharu) akan mencadangkan:-
“Bahawa Dewan ini mengambil ketetapan agar Kerajaan Persekutuan mengambil langkah supaya Artikel 3 Perlembagaan Persekutuan dipinda dengan menambah perkataan saperti berikut (saperti yang dihitamkan):

‘Islam adalah agama bagi Persekutuan termasuk dari segi undang-undang dan syariatnya’.

1. Zulkifli bin Noordin (Kulim Bandar Bharu) will propose:
"That this House makes the resolution that the Federal Government takes the necessary steps such that Article 3 of the Federal Constitution be amended by adding the following words (in bold)

'Islam shall be the religion of the Federation including from the aspects of its laws and principles'.


2. Zulkifli Bin Noordin (Kulim Bandar Bharu) akan mencadangkan:-
"Bahawa Dewan ini mengambil ketetapan agar Kerajaan Persekutuan mengambil langkah supaya Artikel 4 Perlembagaan Persekutuan dipinda dengan menambah perkataan saperti berikut (saperti yang dihitamkan):

‘Perlembagaan ini adalah undang-undang utama Persekutuan dan, kecuali undang-undang dan syariat Islam, apa-apa undang-undang yang diluluskan berlawanan dengan Perlembagaan ini hendaklah terbatal setakat ianya berlawanan itu’.

2. Zulkifli bin Noordin (Kulim Bandar Bharu) will propose:
"That this House makes the resolution that the Federal Government takes the necessary steps such that Article 4 of the Federal Constitution be amended by adding the following words (in bold):

'The Constitution shall be the supreme law of the Federation and, with the exception of Islamic laws and principles, any law which is inconsistent with this Constitution shall, to the extent of the inconsistency, be void.


3. Zulkifli Bin Noordin (Kulim Bandar Bharu) akan mencadangkan:-
“Bahawa Dewan ini mengambil ketetapan agar Kerajaan Persekutuan mengambil langkah supaya Artikel 11 (1) Perlembagaan Persekutuan dipinda dengan menambah perkataan saperti berikut (saperti yang dihitamkan):-

‘Tiap-tiap orang adalah berhak menganuti dan mengamalkan ugamanya, termasuk menukar agamanya kecuali bagi penganut ugama Islam yang hendaklah tertakluk kepada undang-undang dan syariat Islam.

Bagi maksud penganut ugama Islam, soal kemasukan dan kemurtadan dari ugama Islam hendaklah ditentukan oleh Mahkamah Syariah yang mempunyai bidangkuasa mutlak keatasnya’ .

3. Zulkifli bin Noordin (Kulim Bandar Bharu) will propose:
"That this House makes the resolution that the Federal Government takes the necessary steps such that Article 11 (1) of the Federal Constitution be amended by adding the following words (in bold):

'Every person has the right to profess and practice his religion, including changing his religion except for Muslims, who shall be bound by the laws and principles of Islam.

For the purposes of Muslims, the issues of entering into and apostacizing from Islam must be decided by the Syariah Court, which shall have absolute authority over them '.


4. Zulkifli Bin Noordin (Kulim Bandar Bharu) akan mencadangkan:-
“Bahawa Dewan ini mengambil ketetapan agar Kerajaan mengambil langkah supaya Jadual 9 Senarai 2 (1) Perlembagaan Persekutuan dipinda dengan membuang perkataan saperti berikut:-

‘…tetapi tidak mempunyai bidangkuasa mengenai kesalahan-kesalahan kecuali setakat yang diberi oleh undang-undang persekutuan…’ dan diganti dengan perkataan berikut;

‘ dan mempunyai bidangkuasa mengenai apa-apa jua kesalahan jenayah syarie dan lain-lain yang ditetapkan atau diperuntukkan didalam hukum syara’ dan undang-undang Islam termasuk membicarakan, memutuskan dan menghukum mana-mana orang Islam yang berkenaan menurut sabitan dan hukuman yang ditetapkan oleh hukum syara’ dan undang-undang Islam’.

Dan Akta Mahkamah Syariah (Bidangkuasa Jenayah) 1965 hendaklah dipinda bersesuaian dengan pindaan kepada Jadual 9 Senarai 2 (1) Perlembagaan Persekutuan saperti yang dinyatakan diatas”.

4. Zulkifli bin Noordin (Kulim Bandar Bharu) will propose:
That this House makes the resolution that the Government takes the necessary steps such that Schedule 9 List 2 (1) of the Federal Constitution be amended by removing the following words:
'.. but shall not have jurisdiction over offences other than those that are allowed by the laws of the Federation...' and replacing them with the following words:

' and will have jurisdiction over any syariah offence, or any other offences as determined or allocated in syariah jurisprudence including judging, determining and executing sentence on any Muslim concerned according to the indictment and punishment that is specified according to syariah and Islamic laws'.

"As such, the Syariah Court Act (Criminal Jurisdiction) 1965 is to be amended accordingly as per the amendments to Schedule 9 List 2 (1) of the Federal Constitution as stated above".
(source: Zulkifli Noordin: The Riding MP, translation by myAsylum)

Walski has known that it would just a matter of time before Zulkifli Noordin tried to pull something like this. There are, of course, 16 other intended motions, some of which will definitely attract the ire of AIDS, women and human rights activists. For now, Walski has only translated the first four, which he thinks are the most damaging ones for the nation in general.

The implications? Granted, the following comes from a law lay-person's point of view. But not being well-versed in Constitutional Law does not mean Walski is stupid, either.

• In one fell swoop, the proposed amendment to Article 3 will officially make Malaysia an Islamic state. This would be a wet dream come true for Zulkifli Noordin and his ilk. It would also imply that any citizen can now be subject to "Islamic Laws", at the discretion of the Syariah Court. Why these people are so keen to become another Pakistan, God (and they) only knows. Is becoming a failed state such an attractive prospect?
• If this amendment is ever allowed, the New Malaysian Apartheid will be born - one state, two separate laws to govern it - one created in Parliament by representatives of the people, the other at the discretion and pleasure of unelected persons. 
• The proposed amendment to Article 4 will pave the way for imposing laws that are contrary to the Federal Constitution, especially when it comes to Fundemental Liberties, as far as Muslims are concerned.
• As far as any Muslim is concerned in Malaysia, one more fundamental liberty will forever be null and void - freedom of belief. Again, an apartheid - one set of fundemental liberties for Muslims, another set for non-Muslims. You will no longer have ownership over your own conscience. Now isn't that fun?
• These amendments will also mean that it will be impossible for Malaysia to ever ratify the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. 
• The wording in the proposed amendments to Article 11 (1) and Schedule 9 List 2 (1) pretty much means that if you are a Muslim in Malaysia, your life will be governed absolutely by the Shariah Courts. What may be legal today, could well be a Syariah offence tomorrow. This includes what kind of job you may hold in what kind of business establishment, by the way. Again, non-Muslims are at liberty to live their lives, within the bounds of civil legalities. Not so anymore with Mulsims.
• These amendments may also pave the way for the legal (and unchallengeable) formation of a Morality Police squad, which will report directly to either the Syariah Courts, or a National Mufti (another one of the proposed motions that Walski didn't include here - see motion #6). There will no longer be any oversight possible over the Syariah Courts (except possibly by the Malay Rulers), and therefore the Syariah Courts can pretty much do whatever it thinks is it's right.

In short, make Malaysia into an apartheid - one nation, two sets of laws, along religious lines.

Since Walski has had the experience of islamist bloggers deleting their blog posts to cover their tracks, a PDF printout of Zulkifli Noordin's blog posting has been made. For now, Walski will give the MP the benefit of the doubt that he will do no such thing. If the need arises, the linkages to the MP's blog above will be updated accordingly.

To be fair, some of the motions he intends to raise are laudable, particularly those that pertain to requesting the release of ISA detainees (specifically, motions #18 and #19), but then again these are along Pakatan's party lines anyway.

One of the reasons why Walski supported Pakatan Rakyat - regardless of which component party a particular candidate came from - was that for the first time in a long, long while, a credible opposition to the BN emerged. An alternative that would make Malaysia a more equitable and fairer nation for all Malaysians, regardless of ethnicity and creed. Eventually leading to a truly united Malaysia.

So, why is Zulkifli Noordin still in Pakatan Rakyat? And Walski is absolutely certain that he's not the only one asking this question. On the one hand, he belongs to a party that wants to represent all Malaysians, and on the other hand, what he's proposing will lead to a Malaysia that's fractured not only on ethnic lines, but across the religious divide. Confusion? Or hypocrisy?

But Zulkifli Noordin is not alone. He has the support of a very vocal group of people thinking along the same lines. The same ones that constantly cry out "Under Threat!" at any given opportunity. And pretty much get away with it unchallenged.

Remember the Bar Council forum last year that was rudely and abruptly disrupted? The protesters came from across political party lines - BN and non-BN. These people deliberately and wantonly prevent any public discussions on things that they consider "sensitive". It's just another way of saying when it comes to Islam, we and only we have a say.

And now, they're escalating it to a higher level. It's a level that potentially will change what we know as Malaysia. And not for the better either.

If you love this nation, whose diversity is a God-send and blessing - but which some people are just too dense to realize - the time to speak out is now. Especially if you're a Muslim who believes that liberty is a fundamental right of every human being. These proposed motions, if they do get as far as the constitutional amendments they seek, will take your liberty away from you. If not immediately, in due time.

Call upon your respective Member of Parliament to shoot down these motions. Put them to the task. It's your right, since you put him/her there.

It will be a sad day indeed, if in Walski's lifetime, he witnesses our beloved nation becoming the New Apartheid of the 21st century.

The responsibility to ensure that this never happens is in our own hands... and ensure it we can, people.

Yes, we can.