PAS has called on the new Pakatan Harapan government to grant the party access to mainstream media outlets to explain their proposed bill to enhance shariah court punishments in detail.

Syura Council secretary Nik Muhammad Zawawi Salleh said the Islamist party was ready to discuss and hold open dialogues on the controversial Shariah Courts (Criminal Jurisdiction) Act 1965.

“We hope the new government gives us more space, compared to the Umno and Barisan Nasional government.

“This space should not be only in Parliament, but also in the media, including television, so that we can best explain it to the people, especially the non-Muslims,” he was quoted as saying by Utusan Online.

Last year, PAS president Abdul Hadi Awang became the first opposition MP to table the private member’s bill in the Dewan Rakyat.

Speaker Pandikar Amin Mulia halted the debate on the motion and ended the sitting right after PAS secretary-general Takiyuddin Hassan (Kota Baru) seconded the motion.

Critics of the bill say the law, if passed, goes against the basic structure of the federal constitution. – May 16, 2018.