So, Ramadhan has begun and as always, there'll be moon-sighting ceremonies in many Muslim countries. The sighting was then followed by a public announcement in some countries and in Brunei someone has made a joke out of it.
The video shows an actual religious officer but the audio was replaced with someone saying : "Moon-sighting announcement: The new moon has been sighted but only the tip is visible. Therefore, we will be fasting for only half a day."
Not surprisingly, this made the headline the next day!
"SYARIAH COURT WARNS PUBLIC"
Category: Headlines Published on Friday, 12 July 2013
Borneo Bulletin
Bandar Seri Begawan - Syariah Court authorities are viewing seriously a case where a religious officer has been insulted relating to the holy month of Ramadhan thereby insulting Islam.
They were referring to a video clip that went viral on WhatsApp recently pertaining to the announcement of the moon sighting to determine the start of the holy month of Ramadhan.
Some irresponsible person(s) have made a mockery of the moon sighting, which shows a Senior Syariah Court Officer appointed by His Majesty the Sultan and Yang Di-Pertuan of Brunei Darussalam, under Section 10, Syariah Courts Act, Chapter 184.
In view of this, the Syariah Court has informed the relevant authorities for further action to be taken against the perpetrator(s), said Hj Hassan bin Hj Metali, Acting Head of Registrar of the Syariah Court of Appeal yesterday.
He added, it is an offence to insult a Religious Officer and can be charged under Section 190 of the Islamic Religious Council Act and Kadhi Courts Chapter 77 (amendment 1984) where the penalty is one-month imprisonment or a fine of $1,000.
And for insulting the religion, the offender can be charged under Section 191 of similar act where the penalty is six-month imprisonment or a fine of $4,000.
The public has been reminded and advised not to carry out any act deemed to humiliate the religious authority and the religion and urged to respect the appointed religious officers and the purity of Islam so that it would not be looked down upon by any parties.
The public can call the Syariah religious authority at 2221600 should they come across such incidents in the future.
"It was the first such case that came to our attention through the social media," Hj Hassan added.
"If this matter is taken lightly, some irresponsible persons could continue to mock the moon sighting to determine Syawal and so on," he said.
Islam is the official religion as stated in the country's Constitution and it is the responsibility of the individuals not to insult the religion and to uphold its purity.
The video shows an actual religious officer but the audio was replaced with someone saying : "Moon-sighting announcement: The new moon has been sighted but only the tip is visible. Therefore, we will be fasting for only half a day."
Not surprisingly, this made the headline the next day!
"SYARIAH COURT WARNS PUBLIC"
Category: Headlines Published on Friday, 12 July 2013
Borneo Bulletin
Bandar Seri Begawan - Syariah Court authorities are viewing seriously a case where a religious officer has been insulted relating to the holy month of Ramadhan thereby insulting Islam.
They were referring to a video clip that went viral on WhatsApp recently pertaining to the announcement of the moon sighting to determine the start of the holy month of Ramadhan.
Some irresponsible person(s) have made a mockery of the moon sighting, which shows a Senior Syariah Court Officer appointed by His Majesty the Sultan and Yang Di-Pertuan of Brunei Darussalam, under Section 10, Syariah Courts Act, Chapter 184.
In view of this, the Syariah Court has informed the relevant authorities for further action to be taken against the perpetrator(s), said Hj Hassan bin Hj Metali, Acting Head of Registrar of the Syariah Court of Appeal yesterday.
He added, it is an offence to insult a Religious Officer and can be charged under Section 190 of the Islamic Religious Council Act and Kadhi Courts Chapter 77 (amendment 1984) where the penalty is one-month imprisonment or a fine of $1,000.
And for insulting the religion, the offender can be charged under Section 191 of similar act where the penalty is six-month imprisonment or a fine of $4,000.
The public has been reminded and advised not to carry out any act deemed to humiliate the religious authority and the religion and urged to respect the appointed religious officers and the purity of Islam so that it would not be looked down upon by any parties.
The public can call the Syariah religious authority at 2221600 should they come across such incidents in the future.
"It was the first such case that came to our attention through the social media," Hj Hassan added.
"If this matter is taken lightly, some irresponsible persons could continue to mock the moon sighting to determine Syawal and so on," he said.
Islam is the official religion as stated in the country's Constitution and it is the responsibility of the individuals not to insult the religion and to uphold its purity.
