JAKIM WORKING ON LEGAL FRAMEWORK TO HARMONISE STATE-LEVEL ISLAMIC LAWS

PUTRAJAYA, Jan 24 (Bernama) -- The Department of Islamic Development Malaysia (JAKIM) is formulating a legal framework to address inconsistencies in state legislation affecting Muslims.

Its director-general Datuk Dr Sirajuddin Suhaimee said one key issue stemming from the legal inconsistencies is that syarie lawyers are currently restricted to practising only in the states specified in their appointment letters.

For instance, he said, claims for nafkah, or financial support, involving divorced couples residing in different states pose challenges, as syarie lawyers are not allowed to practise across state lines.

“If the husband is in Kelantan and the wife is in Johor, a Johor-based syariah lawyer cannot represent the case in a Kelantan court. This makes things difficult for the community and raises costs, as they need to hire two lawyers,” he said in a special interview with the media here yesterday.

To address this, he said JAKIM is drafting a clause in the state enactment to allow for the cross-state recognition of accredited syarie lawyers.

According to Sirajuddin, the initiative to formulate a model for standardising state-level Islamic law has received support from the National Council for Islamic Religious Affairs (MKI) and consent from the Conference of Rulers.

He explained that the model is not intended to take over religious authority held by the states but aims to safeguard the interests of the ummah.

“Developing this model represents an important milestone in legal diplomacy, as it has harmonised views between the federal government and state religious authorities,” he said.

In addition, Sirajuddin said JAKIM has also developed legal models covering family-related matters, hibah, and Islamic administration.

“We will develop more legal models that can serve as examples for states in implementing and drafting laws at the state level,” he said.

-- BERNAMA