Beer-drinking woman escapes caning sentence
Source: Agencies |
April 2, 2010, Friday
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A MUSLIM woman sentenced to be caned for drinking beer in Malaysia has had her punishment commuted, in a surprising turnaround for a high-profile case that raised questions about Islamic laws intruding into personal matters in the nation.
Kartika Sari Dewi Shukarno, a mother of two, received a letter from the Pahang state Islamic department informing her that the state's sultan has decided to spare her the caning, her lawyer, Adham Jamalullail, said yesterday.
The order is likely to cool a fiery debate over whether Islamic laws are intruding into people's private lives in the Muslim-majority country, which has long been seen as a model of a moderate and progressive Islamic society. Many people had condemned the punishment, saying it shows conservative Islamists are gaining influence over the justice system.
Kartika, a former model and nurse, was sentenced last July. Had the punishment been carried out at the time, she would have been the first woman to be caned in Malaysia.
She pleaded guilty and did not appeal against her sentence, but the punishment was halted at the last minute following an uproar in the media and among rights activists.
Three other Muslim women were caned this year for having sex out of wedlock, becoming the first Muslim women to be caned.
Their cases did not draw as much attention because the caning was kept secret until after it was done. Subsequently, the women appeared before local media and said they deserved the punishment.
Adham said that "as a substitution for the caning, the sultan has ordered Kartika to perform community service for three weeks."
It was not clear what prompted Sultan Ahmad Shah to commute the sentence, but he could have been influenced by the negative publicity that Malaysia received. The sultan is the guardian of Islam in the state, and its titular head.
Kartika Sari Dewi Shukarno, a mother of two, received a letter from the Pahang state Islamic department informing her that the state's sultan has decided to spare her the caning, her lawyer, Adham Jamalullail, said yesterday.
The order is likely to cool a fiery debate over whether Islamic laws are intruding into people's private lives in the Muslim-majority country, which has long been seen as a model of a moderate and progressive Islamic society. Many people had condemned the punishment, saying it shows conservative Islamists are gaining influence over the justice system.
Kartika, a former model and nurse, was sentenced last July. Had the punishment been carried out at the time, she would have been the first woman to be caned in Malaysia.
She pleaded guilty and did not appeal against her sentence, but the punishment was halted at the last minute following an uproar in the media and among rights activists.
Three other Muslim women were caned this year for having sex out of wedlock, becoming the first Muslim women to be caned.
Their cases did not draw as much attention because the caning was kept secret until after it was done. Subsequently, the women appeared before local media and said they deserved the punishment.
Adham said that "as a substitution for the caning, the sultan has ordered Kartika to perform community service for three weeks."
It was not clear what prompted Sultan Ahmad Shah to commute the sentence, but he could have been influenced by the negative publicity that Malaysia received. The sultan is the guardian of Islam in the state, and its titular head.
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