Civil court lets Hindu man have kids back

The Straits Times, May 4, 2007
By Carolyn Hong, Malaysia Bureau Chief



Rubber tapper granted custody of 6 kids taken away by Islamic officials for 'rehabilitation'

KUALA LUMPUR - A HINDU rubber tapper, who had his Muslim wife and six of their seven children taken from him by the Islamic authorities, will soon be reunited with his children.

The civil High Court in Shah Alam yesterday ordered that Mr Marimuthu Periasamy be given custody of all his children, after he took out a civil action for them and his wife to be released.

Mr Marimuthu and Selangor's Islamic affairs department reached an out-of-court settlement shortly before his application was heard.

This is one of the rare occasions where a civil court in Malaysia hears a case about Islamic affairs. Previously, it had always instructed parties to seek redress in the Syariah Court.

Justice Su Geok Yiam recorded the terms of the out-of-court settlement between Mr Marimuthu and the department in a tearful proceeding, during which Mr Marimuthu's wife of 21 years, Madam Raimah Bibi Noordin, confirmed she was born a Muslim and wished to continue being one.

She also agreed to let her husband raise their children, aged four to 14 years, as Hindus.

Mr Marimuthu, 44, withdrew his earlier application for their release.

The family's woes came about because Madam Raimah Bibi, 39, is a Muslim but has been living as a Hindu with her husband and children.

She married Mr Marimuthu in Hindu rites, and their children are registered as Hindus too.

Under the Constitution, which confers on Malays a special position, including economic privileges, a Malay is defined as a person who is Muslim, practises Malay customs and speaks the Malay language.

Apostasy, or the renouncing of one's religion, is a very sensitive issue among Muslims, who regard it as a sin.

Madam Raimah Bibi is of Indian descent but, as a child, was adopted by an Indian-Muslim family.

On April 2, officials from the Islamic Affairs Department took her and six of her children away to a Malay village for religious rehabilitation. The seventh child was then with a relative.

Mr Marimuthu's lead lawyer Karpal Singh - who is also chairman of the opposition Democratic Action Party - said that the case sets a precedent as it gives a Hindu father custody of children who could technically be Muslim.

Asked by reporters about the children's religious status, government lawyer Zauyah Be Loth Khan said it was for the parents to decide.

Mr Ram Karpal Singh, another of Mr Marimuthu's lawyers, told The Straits Times that the settlement with the Islamic authorities was that the children remain Hindus.

'Their mother will have full access to them.'

But, he added, the status of the couple's marriage was unclear as they had not registered their union legally.

Yesterday's settlement was not a wholly happy one, though.

Mr Lim Kit Siang, the parliamentary opposition leader who was present at the hearing, said it was sad that a family had to be split up this way.

'For this to happen to a couple (who have) lived together for 21 years, and as a result of a religious conflict, is not good for our international image.'

This case is only the latest in a long-running series of religious disputes that have strained race relations. The government may set up a commission to handle such cases but, so far, nothing has been done.

In an interview yesterday with news portal Malaysiakini, former premier Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad suggested that Malays could renounce Islam. But if they wanted to do so, they should also be prepared to give up their rights under the Constitution, he said.