Tuesday, December 23, 2008

PAS! Why Force Me To Defend My Position

Whether it is DAP they are asking, I feel compelled to respond when PAS challenges DAP to give its reasonse to DAP's rejection of the Hudud laws.

Fact is, we already have laws that govern. However, injustices do happen. With man made laws we limit the exposure of such injustices to man himself. We don't extend it to the Almighty.

Hudud is claimed to be God given laws. But it is man who is supposed to administer and to issue justice under this law. A failure, there will be unnecessary and uncalled for censure of that law and diminishing of that law in the eyes of everyone. Diminishing the issuer of that law itself indirectly, if not directly.

No doubt PAS may hold that these laws only apply to Muslims. But to non-Muslims, they are our fellow human beings and they are our fellow Malaysians. As much as you might say it is none of our business, it becomes our business when a fellow human being and a fellow Malaysian is dealt an injustice. Should I remain silent or should I condemn the system that brought about the injustice? Does my condemnation confine itself to the people wrecking havoc with the powers they now possess or does my condemnation extend to the source of such power?

In every which way that Hudud is applied, as it calls for the use of a "divinely ordained" rule of conduct and retribution, then, I am inevitably forced to view the same from the "divinely ordained" perspective I have been required to look at within my own believe system.

Let the man without sin be the first to cast the stone on the sinner! By extension, let the man without sin be the one to judge the sinner.

If your cheek is struck, offer the other cheek!

In otherwords, I am forced to judge and deal with crimes from the divinely imposed attitude that my believe systems require of me. Judging is one thing and carrying out the sentence is quite another. And I will fail on both counts. Which means the criminal will go free.

However, within a secular system of crime and punishment I shall have no problem with judgement as well as meteing out punishment. And if an injustice happens, my lord is free from my own shortcomings.

As much as PAS is willing to risk the good name and credibility of their Almighty, I am not. And I am also not happy nor willing to subject their Almighty to scrutiny by the actions of His faithful servants here on earth. As that is what inevitably happens.