oppressive, violent, sexist ..........
Quote:A MUSLIM model sentenced to caning for drinking beer in Malaysia said on Thursday she had been summoned for punishment this week by a local religious authority.
Kartika Sari Dewi Shukarno, 33, was sentenced last year under Islamic law to six lashes and a fine by a religious court in the moderate Muslim-majority country, triggering uproar among human rights groups.
An appeals panel upheld the ruling despite the avalanche of criticism, including the government saying the sentence was "too harsh", although it is not clear what punishment she may now receive.
Kartika, a part-time model and mother of two who was caught drinking in a hotel bar, said she received a letter last week from the religious authorities in the central state of Pahang to present herself at their office on Friday.
"Right now I do not know what sort of punishment it will be," she told AFP.
"I am waiting for clarifications from the religious authorities."
Alcohol is widely available in Malaysia but is forbidden for Muslim Malays, who make up 60 per cent of the population. They can be fined, caned or jailed for up to three years but prosecutions are extremely rare.
Kartika, whose case has fuelled a debate over rising "Islamisation" of the multi-ethnic country, was to have been the first woman to be caned under Islamic law in Malaysia.
But in a surprise move, three other women were caned in February for having sex out of wedlock.
http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/breaking-news/malaysian-beer-drinking-model... Quote:AN Islamic court has ordered an unmarried couple to be caned for trying to have sex in a car.
The ruling is the latest of a series of harsh punishments for Muslims in Malaysia.
Though Malaysia has long been upheld as an example of a moderate Muslim-majority country, recent verdicts sentencing Muslims to whipping for drinking alcohol have made headlines.
Two months ago, an Islamic judge triggered a national debate when he ordered a woman to be caned for drinking beer.
In the latest case, the Shariah High Court in central Selangor state sentenced the couple on Wednesday to six strokes of the cane after they pleaded guilty to trying to have sex out of wedlock in their car, lawyer Shafezan Rusli said on Friday.
Shafezan said Islamic religious police caught Mohamad Shahrin Abdul Majid, 29, and Nadiah Najat Hussin, 24, with only their undergarments on in a car at an office parking lot in May.
He said they were appealing the caning as they planned to get married soon, though they had paid the court-ordered fine of 5,000 ringgit ($1,600) each.
They could have been jailed for up to three years for the offence, the lawyer said.
Shariah laws apply to Muslims, who make up about 60 per cent of the 28 million population, in all personal matters.
Non-Muslims - Chinese, Indians and other minorities - are not subject to the laws.
Earlier this week, an Islamic court in another state ordered an Indonesian Muslim man to be whipped six times and jailed a year for drinking liquor at a restaurant.
In July, the same court had sentenced a Malaysian woman to six strokes of the cane and a fine for drinking beer in public.
The caning, which would be the first time a Malaysian woman has received the punishment, has not been carried out yet.
Many see the sentence as a setback for the country's reputation as a moderate Muslim nation.
AAP
http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/world/malaysian-muslims-caned-for-car-romp/...