peduli apa kita dengan islam bukan nabi? sedangkan rasul yusuf pun dipenjarakan, ni pulak anwar! setakat 1 tahun je di dunia kena tahan, apa barang...

'Get syariah court's okay on child marriages'

2010/03/20

By Farrah Naz Karim and Kristina George

PUTRAJAYA: The Malaysian Syariah Judiciary Department has warned Muslim parents that they can be charged under syariah if they marry off their underage daughters without approval from the syariah court.

If found guilty, they can be fined up to RM3,000 or imprisoned for six months or both, its director-general Tan Sri Ismail Lembut said yesterday.

Ismail, who is also Syarie chief judge, described those who married off their underage daughters without approval as "making a mockery of Islam".

He said the department did not encourage child marriages, although the religion made allowances for it.

The Islamic Family Law of Malaysia sets the minimum legal marrying age of 16 years for girls and 18 years for boys. Exceptions are allowed with the permission of the syariah court.

"We have had some parents requesting to marry off their 16-year-old daughters. We allowed a few as we found that the girls were physically and mentally prepared to start a married life.

"Some girls, even at the age of 16, look frail. We will disallow the marriage as she may not be able to handle the burden of pregnancy and marital duties," he said after chairing a meeting for Muslim single mothers at the department here yesterday.

Ismail said the recent "marriage" of a 11-year-old girl to a 40-year-old man in Kelantan was "religious abuse".

He said her parents should be charged in court under the Kelantan Islamic Family Enactment 2002.

Selangor mufti Datuk Mohd Tamyes Abdul Wahid said the syariah court may be provisioned to hear out applications for marriages involving Muslims below 16 but chances of forming such unions by the underage were often slim.

Applicants, he said, had to meet very strict criteria to prove that they were capable of building a solid and lasting marriage.

"The way I see it, a person below 16 years of age generally does not have the maturity and ability to understand the value and workings of a marriage.

"It is illogical to expect them to understand the responsibilities that entail being married.



"Those children are still struggling to understand the meaning of life, let alone fend for a family that they are about to build."



Tamyes also cautioned against anyone questioning the jurisdiction of syariah, which under strict rulings could allow minors to wed.

"If the syariah court grants the marriage, there is no reason for anyone, not even the civil courts, to question the sanctity of the marriage," he said, adding that the condition for Muslim marriages differed with that of non-Muslims.

Tamyes gave the assurance that the syariah courts would protect the interest of minors in marriages.

"Even for a 30-year-old man who intends to take a second wife, if he is deemed unsuited and unable to bear such huge responsibilities, he will be denied a second marriage. What more when it involves a minor."

Meanwhile, the Law Reform (Marriage & Divorce) Act 1976, which came into force in 1982 and is only applicable to non-Muslims, sets the groom's minimum age at above 18. Males between 18 and 21 must get their parents' consent to marry.



Under Section 12 of the Act (Requirements for Marriage), a non-Muslim bride cannot be below 16 years' old.

They can only get married without their parents' consent if they are above 21.

The law also states that both parties must willingly consent to the marriage and that it is an offence to force or threaten someone to compel a party to marry against his or her will.