MALAYSIA: Malaysian state to cane woman after Ramadan.

Record ID: 739486

  • Title: MALAYSIA: Malaysian state to cane woman after Ramadan.
  • Date: 25th August 2009
  • Summary: (SOUNDBITE) (Bahasa Malaysia) WOMAN DUE TO BE CANED FOR DRINKING ALCOHOL, KARTIKA SARI DEWI SHUKARNO, SAYING: "For me I do not want to involve any politics. So, when faced with this kind of thing, I am aware of the spotlight focusing on me, I need more people that are neutral." SHUKARNO SEATED
  • Embargoed: 9th September 2009 13:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: Malaysia
  • Country: Malaysia
  • Topics: Crime / Law Enforcement,Religion
  • Reuters ID: LVA84M0V81WDTL3N1SJOECMGJD9D
  • Story Text: A Malaysian woman due to be caned after Ramadan says she accepts the sentence and wants to be treated fairly.
    Religious authorities in Malaysia are to cane a Muslim woman convicted of drinking alcohol once the fasting month of Ramadan is over, scotching earlier hopes that she could escape punishment.
    Religious authorities from the eastern Malaysian mainland state of Pahang said on Monday (August 24) that an arrest warrant for Kartika Sari Dewi Shukarno, a 32-year old mother of two, could not be enforced because of Ramadan. Ramadan, a period of fasting and contemplation, started on Saturday (August 22) and is observed by the majority Muslim population in the Southeast Asian country of 27 million people.
    Kartika's father was not pleased with the new development. He urged the authority to execute the whipping as soon as possible,
    "I would like it to be hastened. My daughter had said she did not want it this way...Go ahead and implement (the caning)', he said.
    Kartika was taken away from her home in a van on Monday, but travelled only a short distance before returning to her house.
    She had asked for her sentence, handed down for a December 2007 offence, to be carried out in public. She is also concerned the public attention she is receiving could hurt her case.
    "I do not want to involve any politics. So, when faced with this kind of thing, I am aware of the spotlight focusing on me, I need more people that are neutral," she said, The sentence has sparked concerns over a parallel Islamic legal system in this multi-ethnic country which has seen a rise in the power of an opposition Islamic party.
  • Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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