Malaysian Islamic court jails four Moslem cult members

The court in Kota Baru town in Kelantan state on Sunday sent the three men and a woman to three years' jail each after finding them guilty of offences under the State Islamic and Malay Customs Enactment.

The four, however, face additional charges of attempting to renounce Islam after they told the court during their trial that they were no longer Moslems, a serious offence in Moslem Malaysia. They face a similar jail term. No date has been fixed for the new trial.

The four were identified as former religious teachers Mohamed Ya and his wife Kamariah Ali, Mat Yaakub Ismail and Daud Mamat. They were spared whipping as all were aged over 50 years. The four had been charged four years ago with involvement in an unnamed cult which religious officials said practised deviant Islamic teachings.

They were ordered by the court to repent for their beliefs but had refused to do so, and during their trial claimed they were no longer Moslems and should not be tried by the Islamic court. "Not only that, all of you uttered the most despicable phrase of 'wanting to leave Islam.' You all insulted the court which represents the highest authority on Islam in Kelantan," judge Abdul Rahman Abdullah told the four when passing sentence.

Malaysia's Moslem authorities keep a close watch on deviant Islamic teachings to prevent cults and fanaticism amongst the country's Moslems, who comprise slightly over half of Malaysia's 23 million people. Malaysia has separate Islamic courts to try Moslems for matters relating to family issues and offences under Islamic laws.

(la/dpa)