| Wani Roslan |
ACCORDING to the Syariah Courts, the number of registered cases in 2017 had dropped to 148, compared to 259 cases in 2016, with the predominant Syariah offence being Khalwat (close proximity) cases (at 66 per cent).
“The offence is mainly by Muslim and non-Muslim youths and civil servants. Through observation and in reviewing the penalties imposed by judges to the Khalwat offender, it is apparent that they have not been able to impact new offenders – the sentences were unable to prevent others from committing the offence.”
This was highlighted by Chief Syar’ie Judge Pehin Orang Kaya Paduka Seri Utama Dato Paduka Seri Setia Ustaz Haji Awang Salim bin Haji Besar during the 3rd Annual Assembly of Syariah Courts yesterday.
He said that Khalwat could lead to other Syariah criminal offences, including adultery, pregnancy without ‘nikah,’ child born out of wedlock, and abandoned babies – which is an offence in the civil court. Meanwhile, under the Islamic Family Laws, 137 offences were recorded in 2016, while 136 cases were recorded in 2017 – mostly relating to getting married without court permission and polygamy marriage without permission.
“These offences, although it is not from the total number of criminal offences, can affect the harmony of a family or family institution,” he said.
The Chief Syar’ie Judge also touched on customer service, urging the court management team to examine the options available for the best solution to reduce client waiting time.
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