WOMEN are unfairly treated in the shariah court, a US embassy report on human rights in Malaysia has found.

The report, on rights practices in the country last year, cited civil groups’ complaints on rulings that are biased against Muslim women in divorce and child custody cases.

Noting that the constitution prohibits discrimination on the basis of gender, and grants both men and women equal property rights, the report said the shariah system deviates from these principles in certain areas.

“For instance, Islamic inheritance law generally favours male offspring and relatives.

“Shariah law also generally requires a husband’s consent for divorce, but a steadily increasing number of women have obtained divorces under shariah law without the husband’s consent.”

While civil law grants equal parental rights to non-Muslims, shariah law, which is applicable only to Muslims, favours fathers, said the report.

“Nevertheless, four states – Johor, Selangor, Negri Sembilan and Pahang – extend equal parental rights to Muslim mothers.”

It cited a case last March, where a Muslim woman was stopped from emceeing at a children’s event by Kota Baru Municipal Council officers, who said Muslim women should not speak into microphones because their voice should not be heard by men who are not family.

Also cited is the shariah caning of Muslim women, including a case in Terengganu where a prostitute was jailed six months and given six strokes of the rotan, while her client faced no charge.

The report also touched on the invasion of privacy, using as an example laws that allow police to search, without a warrant, the homes of individuals suspected of posing a threat to national security.

“The government monitored the internet and threatened to detain anyone sending or posting content that the government deemed a threat to public order or security.”

It added that Islamic authorities are allowed to enter private premises without a warrant to nab Muslims suspected of engaging in vice activities, like gambling and fornication.

The report mentioned deaths in police custody that were not investigated by the authorities.

It noted “little progress” in the Human Rights Commission of Malaysia’s (Suhakam) probe into the disappearance of Pastor Raymond Koh, and the police investigations into missing Pastor Joshua Hilmy and his wife, Ruth, and activist Amri Che Mat, who has been linked to Shia teachings.

On arrest procedures, the report cited assertions by civil groups that police’s approach of “arrest first, investigate later” is prevalent, particularly in terrorism cases.

“The authorities sometimes used their powers to intimidate and punish opponents of the government,” it added.

“Activists and government critics were often subjected to late-night arrests, long hours of questioning and lengthy remand periods, even if they were not ultimately charged with an offence.

“According to Suhakam, police raided the home of lawyer and civil society activist Siti Kasim in June without officers adequately and reasonably investigating the factual circumstances of the case.”

Siti’s home was searched following a claim she had “kidnapped” a client, a young woman who sought shelter at the lawyer’s home from an abusive mother.

On the denial of fair trials, the report cited Court of Appeal judge Hamid Sultan Abu Backer’s expose about how he was “severely reprimanded” by a senior justice for dissenting in a high-profile case. – March 19, 2019.