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© Copyright 2010 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.52 unmarried Malaysian Muslim couples face jail for hotel liaisons
KUALA LUMPUR©2024 GPlusMedia Inc.
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nandakandamanda
Strict enforcement means people will want to live their lives in private, free from prying eyes.
Let's hope this only strengthens their love for each other.
bdiego
The irony is the police are enforcing religious rules. Non-muslims are exempt, but Muslims can be sent to a secular prison for a religious offense. Particularly one as simple as being alone with someone who is not your spouse (or relative).
Beelzebub
Wow, no such thing as "pursuit of happiness" in Malaysia, is there?
SuperLib
Seems like the reporting of Islam from Malaysia is a hot topic for JT....
LoveUSA
They shall come to Japan hahaha
RomeoRamenII
And to think this is the lifestyle that liberals want the non-Muslim world to live under.
some14some
for what japanese call it 'pipe-cut' (sterilization)? hahaha....
WilliB
Thats Sharia for you. The same thing is happening in Aceh province in Indonesia. Next on the agenda is death penalty for homosexuality, amputation for theft, stoning for adultary, polygamy, and 3-second divorce (for men only). It is all in the Shariah, and if the islamic groups have their way, we get in Europe too.
ca1ic0cat
I guess there are no love hotels in Malaysia then. It's rather amazing how Shariah can turn a once pleasant place into a nasty little backwater.
jmarc
woua !! i went to sky in the French Alps for xmas and there was a group of 50 malysians student where i stayed. They were drinking alcool every night in Private Salons and you could hear them making love around 2 am most of the nights. I can tell you, none were married. It will be hard on them to go back to their home country for their studies are finished
jmarc
Umm i meant skiing not "sky". Everyone understood i guess.
WilliB
jmarc:
" woua !! i went to sky in the French Alps for xmas and there was a group of 50 malysians student where i stayed. They were drinking alcool every night in Private Salons "
Two quick points: 1) The shariah rules only apply to Malay Malysians (who are muslim by law). If those were Chinese or Indian malays, they were not muslim. 2) Away from the Shariah police, the less fanatical muslims don´t always follow scripture. To wit, the Thai/Malaysian border town of Hadyai has probably the highest brothel density in the world.
Betzee
"The irony is the police are enforcing religious rules. Non-muslims are exempt, but Muslims can be sent to a secular prison for a religious offense. Particularly one as simple as being alone with someone who is not your spouse (or relative)."
The irony is that it's not the activity per se but who's doing it which determines whether it's an offense. There are two legal systems in Malaysia. Civil applies to non-Muslims while Shari'a applies to Muslims. Married Muslims carry couple identification to prove they are entitled to engage in khalwat.
The divorce rate among Malay Muslims is higher than for ethnic Chinese and Indians. The Shari'a court in one state caused a stir by accepting a declaration of intent to divorce sent by a man to his wife via text message.
WilliB
caticat:
Indeed it is. And the Westen governments are allowing this pest into our countries too.
sharky1
Malaysia truly muslim....Don't go to malaysia
Betzee
Malaysia truly muslim....Don't go to malaysia
Religious policy is set at the state level in Malaysia. The Islamic-leaning party has enjoyed electoral success in some states, in part owing to ruling party corruption which is analogous to the situation in Japan, and stepped up enforcement of Shari'a law. By contrast, despite a "sin tax" on alcohol in Kuala Lumpur, bars fill up every night. Penang state, a major tourist destination, has an ethnic Chinese majority, international visitors are hardly aware they are in a Muslim country.
ptolemy
No the actual irony is: These people cannot practice their freedoms without religious police kicking their a$$es. That is the whole story. Imams are so bored with their lives their have to poke their noses into everyone eles's life for excitement.
Too bad for Malaysia, once free, now bound under a foreign law and religion. Once Chinese and Confucian, now under foreign law and religion.
PAY HEED WEST.
tarento
Sharia don't like it. Rock the Casbah. Rock the Casbah.
Betzee
No the actual irony is: These people cannot practice their freedoms without religious police kicking their a$$es.
Muslims don't enjoy the freedom to have sex with someone other than their spouse.
Good_Jorb
I didn't think most Baptists were liberals.
glycol57
Oh well, every country has its 'morality' laws. A few try to seperate religious laws from secular authority (with varying degrees of success - see http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/01/02/AR2010010201846.html relative to Ireland and "blasphemy" laws).
Malaysia and Indonesia seem to be coming to a sort of crisis point of late however. They have become very 'modernized' in many respects and maintain constant commercial ties to other more libertine nations - yet the clerics and governments seem intent on continuing with sharia law and ultra-conservative Islamic principles. Much of the population yearns to breath free, so to speak, but Islam is an important tool, and sword, for those weilding political power.
It means something bad is going to happen. Not tomorrow, but within a generation. The children of these 'sinful libertines' will be even MORE libertine, even more deeply 'contaminated' by foreign cultures. Meek sumbission will give way to anger and conflict as extreme meets extreme.
Of course Japan also tried to shut out the rest of the world ... and had fair success for quite awhile. Of course the world was 'slower' back then too and far less 'connected'. Such an attempt wouldn't have lasted a single generation nowadays ... and it won't in Malaysia either.
In the meanwhile, a more disturbing trend is towards nations trying to apply their laws to activities that occur in other nations. The USA is on a kiddie-porn witchhunt - so anything a US citizen allegedly does in Cambodia warrants arrest if they return to the USA. Iran now claims that sharia and national laws apply to its citizens even when they are abroad - and will prosecute 'un-Islamic' behavior, theoretically up to applying the death penalty. The whole idea seems an attempt to create a "no escape / no asylum" psychology to terrorize the population ... the old "Big Brother is watching you" thing.
If such trends continue unchecked the world could become a much less pleasant place to live. In the end, the laws of the very most oppressive, fascistic country become THE law for the rest of the world. This was attempted in the USA about fifteen years ago when lawsuits were filed by ultra-religious activists from a 'porn'-unfriendly state claiming that satellite TV broadcasts originating from other states were violating that one states laws and had to cease (meaning they'd have to cease everywhere due to the nature of satellite broadcasting). The suits were eventually dismissed ... but this APPROACH to imposing somebodys idea of sharia law everywhere remains a threat.
goddog
Great noodles down there. Maybe if we can get the sharia police to go to more noodle shops, like the American cops go to doughnut shops, then we can free up the people from Shakaria. :-)
Madverts
I presume this has always happened in this neck of the woods, but let's not let that in the way of a good shriek (check's under the bed) about Islam, now shall we?
kodaiflow
One thing the article did not state is that if you are of Malay ethnic decent, you are considered Muslim regardless.
kp123
Traveling to Malaysia (Penang and KL) many times on business, I was aware about prostitution laws being ultimately a serious offense in that country. Their southern neighbor, Singapore, is the same. Japanese sex tours concentrate mainly on Thailand and Taiwan if that gives anyone an indication. Had SF passed the referendum to legalize prostitution last year, they might have joined the club. One thing I found hard to take (an aside) in Malaysia was the odor of coconut in the air.
Molenir
Now thats sad. So even if you decide to convert to a real religion, you're still considered Muslim. Just can't get away from that stuff can you.
medievaltimes
We cant judge. All cultures are beautiful. All religions are great. We cant judge. All cultures are the same. We cant judge.
ptolemy
@ Betzee:
That is my point. It is nobody's f-ing business who is doing who. When Imams, rabbis, priests, and police keep their noses out of people's hotel or bed rooms, the better off we all are.
Unless you support the fact that your, my, and everyones sex life is their business. In which case, here is a burka for ya. Now don't you look just "kawaii!" in it.
YuriOtani
Not sure what to make of this story. As a poster mentioned the land of the fee is becoming increasing its choke hold on the Americans. As for Malaysia how long will it be before all people are subject to Shariah law?
flatearther
Two years in prison for being alone in a hotel room with someone??? That's harsh.
Betzee
Malaysia and Indonesia seem to be coming to a sort of crisis point of late however. They have become very 'modernized' in many respects and maintain constant commercial ties to other more libertine nations - yet the clerics and governments seem intent on continuing with sharia law and ultra-conservative Islamic principles. Much of the population yearns to breath free, so to speak, but Islam is an important tool, and sword, for those weilding political power.
Malaysia is a lot wealthier than Indonesia which exports labor, some undocumented, to its northern neighbor.
Malaysia has one of the highest rates of private auto ownership in Asia. While the country's economic development had been envied throughout much of the world, it's also brought social dislocation. As a result, some Malay Muslims "cling to their religion." The Islamic party won control of Selangor state, where this occurred, and has pushed enforcement of Shari'a law.
Betzee
I presume this has always happened in this neck of the woods, but let's not let that in the way of a good shriek (check's under the bed) about Islam, now shall we?
Happy New Year old friend! In fact the ruling party altered the constitution to throw a bone at the Islamists and didn't understand they were conferring equal status to Shari'a courts with that of civil jurisprudence.
The problems really come in the case of conversions. There's been a few. Whoever has converted then bestows the Muslim faith on their children and the non-Muslim parent has no standing to petition the Shari'a court. Another case was about burial rites for a man whose Hindu wife insisted he never converted. In Selangor, apostasy is punishable by death, though the constitution allows for freedom of religion.
norinrad21
Sounds like the purification police caught up with them. LOL
bisoy
Gay couples are spared?
lostrune2
Heheh, those Malaysians are such Puritans!
Athletes
I do not wish to offend the Islamic law and law enforcement officers. However not all Muslims are following their rigid rules. According their religious law, they can not have alcohol. They can not commit the adultery. They can not visit brothels. In the reality, many of them not follow the rules including law enforcement officers.
I used to visit Hat-yai, Johor Bahru and Singapore for business. Hatyai is a southern Thailand town which is very close to Malay border. It has a few hours driving distance from Penang. It is catering the bargain shopping and prostitution for Malaysians. Many young and old malay men are enjoying the freedom they can not have at their home. Hat-yai can be called as northern paradise for malay sex tourists.
Legally prostitution is not allowed in Singapore. However they have Geyland street red light district. It is particular catering the Malaysians and Indonesians. Singapore is a southern paradise for Malay sex tourists. Whatever restrictions and punishments of law at home can not deter these tourists for having fun there. In my view, they are free as birds in Singapore and Hat-Yai. No wonder many Malays and Indonesians wish to migrate to abroad.
m5c32
alone together
What?? How can one accomplish this physical imposibility?