[UPDATED] Maria Chin Abdullah gets seven days’ jail for contempt of court

KUALA LUMPUR – Petaling Jaya MP Maria Chin Abdullah has been sentenced by the shariah court to seven days in jail for contempt of court, according to a Bernama report.

The sentencing is related to a 2018 incident where Maria had called on authorities to correct injustices against Muslim women.

This came after the shariah’s court sentencing of Datin Emilia Hanafi to seven days’ imprisonment after she unilaterally rescheduled visitation dates for her children to be with their father, Naza Group chairman Datuk S.M. Faisal Nasimuddin, following their divorce.

Last year, Maria had sought a judicial review at the civil high court after being allegedly refused recourse by the shariah court to address the “improper process” of contempt proceedings against her.

In delivering the sentence, Judge Mohamed Faouzi said the title used by Maria in her article has insulted the court and given a bad impression of the institution of the shariah court in the public eye.

“The respondent had also used incorrect, irrelevant facts in her writing,” Faouzi was quoted as saying by Utusan Malaysia.

“The respondent’s actions clearly demeaned, belittled, slandered and insulted the shariah court.

“It is also not appropriate for the respondent, as a member of the Dewan Rakyat, to slander and insult the court that is carrying out its responsibilities," he added.

“The court hereby finds the respondent guilty of contempt of court through the article published on September 5, 2018.”

He said the court also rejected the show-cause notice submitted by Chin and ordered her to be sentenced to seven days in jail effective today,

It is reported that Chin, who is a former Bersih 2.0 president, was not present in court during the sentencing. – The Vibes, April 25, 2022