Word: terengganu
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Dates: during 2002-2002
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...punishments familiar from the Taliban's days in Afghanistan: whipping for a range of relatively minor offenses such as consumption of alcohol; stoning to death for adulterers; hand amputation for theft. It's all part of a drive by the conservative Islamic Party of Malaysia (PAS), which governs Terengganu and is the country's main opposition party, to create what it calls a "pious, religious, disciplined, dignified, noble and trustworthy society...
...that has put Terengganu on a collision course with Malaysia's central government. Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad has no intention of letting parts of his moderate, secularly governed nation go the way of Afghanistan. Until recently, it seemed a showdown would not be necessary. Nine years ago, PAS tried to enact similar laws in Kelantan, a neighboring state that it also governs, yet these were never implemented owing to the threat of legal challenges from Kuala Lumpur. But the party's hard-line leader, cleric Hadi Awang, personally runs Terengganu as Chief Minister and he is a determined adversary...
...vowed that the police force-which is controlled by the central government-will not enforce the hudud laws. And he declared that the country's federally run prisons won't house anyone convicted of breaking such laws. Publicly, Mahathir has been equally uncompromising. On a recent visit to Terengganu, he thundered that people who attempt to enforce such laws "have deviated from Islam and should be condemned to hell." The trouble is, the issue puts him in a tricky political bind. Mahathir and his party cannot afford to appear anti-Islamic or they could alienate Muslim Malay voters, who constitute...
...Mahathir has to tread lightly. One key issue is whether the hudud laws violate the country's constitution. Kuala Lumpur insists that the Terengganu state assembly does not have the right to enact laws covering criminal offenses, which can only be passed by the country's national assembly. The central government's Law Minister recently promised that Terengganu's hudud laws would soon be challenged in court, though legal analysts say they expect the government to allow the suit to come from a private individual or group, not from the Attorney General. Says P. Ramasamy, a professor of political science...
...percent of the population) will welcome the new system. "The important issue is the wisdom of the law," he says with a cold smile. "Islamic laws will prove to be wiser and will make people repent and not repeat their criminal acts." If you are planning a trip to Terengganu, you might want to bring your piety with you-and leave the bikini at home...