The Star Online (http://www.thestar.com.my)
(1)Sisters in Islam files for judicial review on fatwa , 31 October 2014
by Rashvinjeet S. Bedi
PETALING JAYA: Sisters in Islam (SIS) has filed for a judicial review on a gazetted fatwa (edict) in Selangor that declared the Muslim women’s rights group as deviating from Islam.
SIS executive director Ratna Osman said they only came across the fatwa by chance on Oct 20.
“We view with grave concern, the allegations made against us and question the basis of this fatwa,” she said during a press conference here Friday.
SIS named the Selangor Fatwa Committee, the Selangor Islamic Religious Council (Mais) and the state government as respondents in the review filed Friday at the Kuala Lumpur High Court.
The fatwa titled “Pemikiran Liberalisme dan Pluralisme Agama” declared SIS Forum (Malaysia) as subscribing to liberalism and religious pluralism, and therefore deviating from the teachings of Islam.
The fatwa, which was gazetted in July, also allows for any publications deemed liberal and plural to be banned and seized.
In addition, it calls for any form of social media that promotes such content to be monitored and restricted by the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commissions (MCMC).
The outspoken group has been regularly criticised by religious authorities and Islamist non-government organisations for its views on Islam.
SIS board director Marina Mahathir questioned the reasoning behind the fatwa and asked why the group was not informed about it in the first place.
She also asked the authorities to define the meaning of liberalism and pluralism and spell out what they did was against Islam.
“If justice and equality for women is un-Islamic, I don’t know where we are going with this,” she said.
Former minister Datuk Zaid Ibrahim and co-founder of SIS Zainah Anwar are co-appellants in the review application as “concerned Muslims.”
(2)SIS: Does helping 10,000 Muslim women deviate from Islamic teachings?, 2 November 2014
by Rahmah Ghazali
PETALING JAYA: Sisters In Islam (SIS) is entitled to challenge the gazetted fatwa (edict) in Selangor that declared the group as deviating from Islam, according to its programme manager Suri Kempe.
Suri said the Muslim women's rights group was challenging the edict on constitutional grounds, which they were legally entitled to, despite Selangor Mentri Besar Azmin Ali’s call for the move to gazette the fatwa to be respected.
"With all due respect, what does it even mean to 'respect’ the fatwa? Perhaps he (Azmin) can enlighten us on the definition of 'liberalism and pluralism'," she said when contacted, Sunday.
Suri said the group has been reaching out to Muslim women who needed assistance in various circumstances.
"Does helping nearly 10,000 Muslim women who turned to us for legal help, and training over 4,000 women with knowledge that has empowered them to know their rights in Islam constitute liberalism and pluralism, and therefore deviating from Islamic teachings?” she asked.
On Friday, SIS had filed a judicial review on a fatwa made by the Selangor Islamic Religious Council (Mais), which had declared them as subscribing to liberalism and religious pluralism, and therefore deviating from the teachings of Islam.
They named Mais, the Selangor Fatwa Committee and the state government as respondents in the review filed at the Kuala Lumpur High Court.
However, on Saturday, Azmin said the decision on the fatwa had been made and that it should be respected, without elaborating further on the matter.
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