The Malaysian InsiderCourt ruling on Muslim transsexuals raises alarm over Islam 'superseding' ConstitutionBy Debra Chong, Assistant News Editor, October 12, 2012, UPDATED @ 03:02:30 PM 12-10-2012
http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/malaysia/article/court-ruling-on-muslim-transsexuals-raises-alarm-over-islam-superseding-constitutionhttps://www.susans.org/forums/index.php/topic,128132.0.html Related article
Members of the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community and residents took part in the annual "Marcha de la diversidad" (diversity demonstration) in downtown Montevideo September 28, 2012. A Malaysian High Court ruling against Muslim transexuals has sparked concerns that Islamic law is now supplanting the Federal Constitution, say legal experts. — Reuters pic
KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 12 — A High Court ruling against Muslim transsexuals in Negri Sembilan yesterday is raising concerns that Islamic law is now supplanting the Federal Constitution as the country's supreme law, legal experts have said.
Civil liberties lawyer Syahredzan Johan and law lecturer Azmi Sharom told The Malaysian Insider that there is a worrying trend that the judiciary has been putting Islamic law above all other laws in Malaysia's dual-track court system - pointing to yesterday's judgment as an example of an erosion of the Federal Constitution.
"There is a worrying trend in which the judiciary appears to place Islamic enactments on a higher pedestal than the Constitution.
"Islam is the religion of the Federation, but that does not mean that 'Islam', or what the authorities deem as 'Islam', supersedes other Constitutional provisions," Syahredzan said.
