-♻RetweetYou Can Check In Any Time You Like
Sat, Nov 22, 2003 at 5:36:29 pm PST
Converting to Islam is ridiculously easy. Just say (in Arabic, of course) “Allah is the one true god” three times, and you are officially a Muslim.
But leaving the Religion of Peace and Tolerance is not so simple, as four Malaysians who renounced Islam 5 years ago have discovered.
Because a Malaysian law allows would-be apostates to be imprisoned for up to 36 months for “religious instruction and repentance.” (Hat tip: Nancy.)
(Section 102(1) of the Enactment provides in essence that a Muslim may not declare that he is not a Muslim save where he has been certified as such by a Syariah court.Section 102(3) allows a Muslim to be detained at an Islamic Guidance Centre for up to 36 months for religious instruction and repentance if he attempted to renounce his faith.) Kelantan legal adviser Che Mohd Ruzima Ghazali, for the Kelantan Government and MAIK, adopted Gani's submission.
In reply, Malik Imtiaz Sarwar, for the appellants, said no one could judge a person's desire to renounce Islam.
He said if a person renounced Islam to escape an obligation such as prosecution, action such as charges of obstruction of justice could be framed against them.
Malik said the appellants' renunciation was consistent with their conduct.
"They had already been convicted of so-called deviant teaching.
"What more proof do you need when they have already been convicted of practising something which is inconsistent with Islam?" he said.
Frank says:
