PAS wants its supporters to dress in purple every Saturday until the Private Member’s Bill seeking harsher penalties under syariah law is tabled in the upcoming Parliament sitting.
Its information chief Nasrudin Hassan said supporters need to maintain the momentum in support of the Bill – dubbed RUU355 – so it will be approved in Parliament.
“The RUU355 wave or the purple wave needs to carry on until the Bill is passed,” he said, adding Malaysians should dress in purple every Saturday.
Last Saturday, PAS staged a rally in Padang Merbok, Kuala Lumpur in support of proposed amendments to the Syariah Courts (Criminal Jurisdiction) Act 1965 (Act 355).
The amendments seek to increase punishments for syariah offences to a maximum of 100 lashes, fines not more than RM100,000 and up to 30 years in prison, from the current cap of six lashes, RM5,000 fine and three-year jail term.
Nasrudin, who is also Temerloh MP, said the proposed amendments have created an “extraordinary” wave of support.
“The Parliament sitting will begin on March 6 and will end on April 6. Once again, the RUU355 will be tabled by either (PAS president) Datuk Seri Hadi Abdul Awang or the Government’s side.
“But most importantly, the amendments need to be supported and approved in Parliament and the people need to keep the momentum going,” he said.
The proposed amendments have been met with criticism from civil society groups and several political parties as there are concerns that it will affect non-Muslims.
PAS, on the other hand, insist that the amendments will not infringe on the rights of non-Muslims and as such non-Muslims should have nothing to fear.- thestar.
