Mercy in Islam

April 1 — Syukur Alhamdullilah should be on Kartika Sari Dewi Sukarno’s tongue and heart right now.

Her caning sentence was commuted by the Sultan of Pahang the day before she surrendered herself to the Pahang Islamic authorities.

The 33-year-old part-time model was supposed to be caned six times last August for the 2008 offence but it was called off at the last minute.

Her case received heavy coverage by international and local press, and the recent caning of three women who had sex outside of a marriage sparked off heated debates among the conservatives and liberal Muslims in Malaysia.

If Kartika’s punishment was meted out, she would have been the fourth woman to be caned under Syariah law.

The recent development will have women’s organisations and liberal Muslims squeal with joy, but it will not go down well with hardliners who have been pressing to have the caning sentence carried out.

Questions abound: was Kartika let off the hook because she had met with the Sultan of Pahang? What were the reasons for the commutation? And why should she not be caned when three other women had been earlier this year? After all, Kartika herself asked for a public caning.

There have been countless essays and op-ed pieces which discussed the punishment for the drinking of alcohol. There have also been many discussions on the difference between caning under the Syariah law and whipping under civil law.

What is apparent to the Malaysians is that there is a divide between the classes, and Muslim mindset among the Muslims in the country.

It would be all too trite to say that Allah had demonstrated mercy, as well as the Sultan of Pahang, upon a ‘depressed’ single mother (Kartika has since divorced from her husband. At the time of her arrest she was still married).

Indeed the commutation is merciful, but in whose books? It would also be too simplistic to argue that Muslims in Malaysia do drink, have sex outside a marriage, commit adultery and practise corruption.

The point is that Muslims are to abstain from alcohol and zina (among other things) and the consequences are dire if they err.

What Muslim Malaysians will have to do after reading this piece of news is to ask themselves as to what Islam they want in their lives.

There are a few types of Islam being practiced: the political Islam; fundamentalist and progressive, and there’s liberal Islam.

And they sometimes differ, because Muslims in Malaysia belong to different ethnic groups. It’s not just the Malays who are Muslim: don’t forget, we have Chinese and Indian Muslims who have a richer and longer tradition and history of Islam than Malay Malaysians.

If one is to box these ‘types’ of Islam, it would look like that there is no synergy between each other.

However, this diversity among the many Muslim communities is not embraced.

If a religious man of stature such as Dr Mohd Asri Zainul Abidin can be censured by his own colleagues, and that more than 60 NGOs signed a petition titled “Support The Right to Freedom of Expression in Malaysia” yesterday, this clearly shows that there are gaps demanding to be filled. Note too that each Malaysian state practises its own version of Syaria law.

Mercy has been shown towards Kartika who now has to perform three weeks of community service.

And while Kartika goes about her business quietly and away from the media glare, it is hoped that Malaysians will show mercy towards each other.

* The views expressed here are the personal opinion of the columnist.