Mohamed Azam Mohamed Adil

Financial Management Practices of Mosques in Malaysia

This study explores on the importance of financial management practices for different types of mosques in Malaysia. Questionnaires were administered to chairman and treasurer of 192 selected mosques available in Malaysia including Sabah and Sarawak. This study suggests that a proper and accurate recording of financial transactions, enhancing the accountability of chairman and treasurer is required in order to improve the productivity and performance effectiveness. The inclusion of these variables provides important implications for expanding our understanding of financial management practices in nonprofit organizations and creating new research opportunities. The result suggests that Malaysian mosques can enhance internal control system and performance to achieve mission and goals of these crucial institutions of societal development.

Islamic Law and Human Rights in Malaysia

This article deals with the Islamic law and human rights principles which constitute the two important elements of the Malaysian legal system. Human rights, despite being a basic tenet of Islam, have frequently and widely been misunderstood by many Muslims. Indeed, the protection of human rights is consistent with the very objective of the coming of Islam i.e. as a mercy to the whole universe and for safeguarding the sacred values of humanity. As such, it is not an exaggeration to consider that Islam is a strong proponent of human rights and violations of human rights may be tantamount to disregarding Islamic principles. Nevertheless, due to constitutional constraints, the protection of human rights in Malaysian law may not necessarily be based on Islamic law. This is because the Federal Constitution of Malaysia limits the jurisdictions of Islamic law to selected matters such as matrimonial issues and other limited criminal jurisdictions. Despite Article 3 of the Constitution that clearly names Islam as the religion of the Federation, this provision, does not provide for the full application of Islamic law in Malaysia. Thus, the protection of human rights in Malaysia is selectively covered based on Islamic law, whereas the major scope of protections is covered by Federal-based civil law, in accordance with the specification of jurisdiction vested by the Constitution.

Standardisation of Fatwa in Malaysia : Issues , Concerns and Expectations

The establishment of the institution of fatwa can be traced back before the independence of Malaysia. In the beginning, a Mufti was placed under the respective Islamic Councils. To a certain extent, a Mufti was also a judge (kadi) and presided over cases in the Shari’ah courts. Legally, a Mufti’s views are not considered as fatwas. Only fatwas issued by the respective States’ Fatwa Committees are regarded as fatwas. A fatwa is binding upon Muslims of the state where it is issued after being consented to by the Sultan and later gazetted. The problem is that more often than not, conflicting fatwas at state and national levels do occur, and this has led to confusion and problems. This article attempts to analyse the problems surrounding the conflicting fatwas. It suggests that the standardisation of fatwas at state and federal levels could be done by requesting the respective States’ Fatwa Committees to abide by the fatwas issued by the National Fatwa Committee. It is also suggested that fatwas issued by the respective States’ Fatwa Committees should be brought up to the National Fatwa Council for standardisation. It is also suggested that a Grand Mufti should be appointed on rotational basis like the selection of the Yang Di Pertuan Agong, after being consented to by the Council of Rulers. However, the position of Gand Mufti will not supersede the position of the respective States’ Muftis.

The Status and Implementation of Islamic Law in Malaysia

In the Federation of Malaysia, Islam is the religion of the Federation but this does not extend to the legal perspective. In other words, Islamic law is not the supreme law of the Federation because the Federal Constitution has clearly stated that the supreme law of the country is the Constitution itself. This article aims to examine the status and implementation of Islamic law in Malaysia. At the onset, the article analyses the historical background of Islam in pre-Malaysia era with particular focus on its Islamic law perspective. The independence of Malaya in 1957 led to the formation of the Federal Constitution which is considered the main source of law in the country. This article assesses a number of provisions in the Constitutions and some related cases that touch on Islamic affairs. Also, the divisions of jurisdictions for both civil laws and Islamic laws is analysed against the backdrops of the Federal Constitution and other relevant legislations. To sum up, it can be said that despite the fact that Islam is given a special position under Article 3(1) of the Federal Constitution, Islamic law is not fully implemented in Malaysia. The jurisdiction awarded by the Ninth Schedule, List II State List is very limited, only confined to Muslim followers and is mostly related to personal laws, including amongst others: marriage; divorce; inheritance and other offences that are against the precepts of the religion of Islam. Civil laws, on the other hand, are subject to federal jurisdiction, which cannot interfere with the State laws such as the Islamic laws which fall under the State jurisdiction.

Social Collateral Model for Islamic Microfinance

This study examines the social collateral model for Islamic microfinance in Malaysia. Using qualitative instruments on academics and officers of microfinance institutions as the sample study, this study identifies the components that should be included in the social collateral model for Islamic microfinance. Based on interviews and focus group discussions, this study found that similar to the conventional microfinance, the Islamic microfinance also include social capital, group pressure, entrepreneurship skills, and culture as the components of social collateral model. In addition, this study found that religiosity represents another important component of the social collateral model for Islamic microfinance.

Reappraisal of Governance for Underage Marriage in Malaysia

Marriage before the age of 18 is a reality for many young women in most part of the world including Malaysia. Despite being prohibited by international human rights laws, underage marriage continues to be practised. This study attempts to examine the existing legal and administrative mechanism and to find out their weaknesses in governing the underage marriage for Muslim people in Malaysia. In this research, laws and administrative procedures of Federal Territories relating to underage marriage are chosen to represent other states of Malaysia. For this, these data are mainly from Islamic Family Law Federal Territories Act 1984 and related administrative procedures and formalities. Other relevant laws and administrative procedures are studied and analysed, whereas for the theoretical part, data from library research were sought. This research also employed a semi-structured interviews conducted on several respondents from the related institutions. This finding of this research shows some significant weaknesses in the governance of underage marriage from both legal and administrative aspects which contribute to the country’s rising rate of underage marriage. This study also proposes important recommendations for improvement which could reduce the rate of underage marriage.

Analysis on the Legal and Administrative Mechanisms in Curbing Syndicate and Runaway Marriages in Malaysia

Legal and administrative mechanisms are designed to ensure the legality of marriage under both the Shariah and Malaysian laws. The aim is also to preserve the interest of the family and the public. However, there are people who still look other alternatives to be married mainly through syndicate or simply to run away to country’s border. This study attempts to examine the existing legal and administrative systems and to find out their weaknesses in preventing syndicate and runaway marriage for Muslim people in Malaysia. In this research, laws and procedures from four selected states in Malaysia are chosen, i.e., Selangor, Federal Territories, Negeri Sembilan and Kelantan. Data of this research were obtained from library research and semi-structured interviews conducted on several respondents from the related institutions. Law and procedures from the four states were also studied and analysed. The finding of this research shows some significant weaknesses in both legal and administrative aspects that contribute to the country’s alarming syndicate and runaway marriage rate. This research also suggests some recommendations for improvement that could reduce the rate of both illegal marriages.

Custodial Issues Arising upon the Conversion of One Spouse to Islam

Abdul Hamid bin Ja’far reported from his father on the authority of his grandfather Rafi’ bin Sinan, that he (Rafi’ bin Sinan) embraced Islam, but his wife refused to do so. So she went to the Prophet and said: “She is my daughter, and she is weaned, or almost weaned.” And Rafi’ said: “She is my daughter.” So the Prophet told him, “Sit on this side,” and told her, “Sit on that side,” and then placed the girl between them. He then said to both of them. “Call her.” The girl went towards her mother, but the Prophet said: “O Allah! Guide her,” so she went to her father, and took her.1

The Implementation of Land Acquisition Act 1960 and its Negative Impact on the Development of Waqf ( Endowment ) Land in Malaysia

The Land Acquisition Act 1960 has long been used in land acquisition law to take over land by force in Malaysia. This article attempts to identify the extent of implementation of land acquisition by the government based on the Land Acquisition Act 1960; whether it meets and is consistent with the Shariah, particularly involving Muslim waqf land. A few suggestions towards Islamisation of the act have been put forward to improve the Act by taking into account the principles and methods governing the Shariah so that every national development can be done in a more dynamic and comprehensive manner in tandem with modern needs.

Shariah-Compliant Screening Practices in Malaysia

This study reviews twenty-eight users of Islamic equity screening in Malaysia based on the most recent information collected in 2012. Except for the Securities Commission and two index providers, the rest of the users are mutual fund companies. Our review indicates that, with few exceptions, the majority of the local screening users are following the benchmarks set by the Securities Commission of Malaysia, in which only industry screening is applied to separate Shariah compliant from non-compliant companies. A few users, however, employ a two-tier quantitative approach in addition to the qualitative screening. The qualitative screening removes companies whose main businesses are Shariah non-compliant. Companies with mixed activities are then subject to quantitative screenings in which non-compliant contributions are measured against applicable benchmarks. The Securities Commission is scheduled to have in place a two-tier quantitative screening method which is more in line with international practices by the end of 2013.