Muslim men who entice married women face three years' jail in Terengganu

KUALA TERENGGANU - In Terengganu, any man found guilty of enticing another man's wife faces a fine of RM5,000 or three years imprisonment or both.

State Syariah Court chief judge Datuk Wan Mohd Zakri Wan Mohd said seducing someone's wife was an offence under Section 43 of the Terengganu Syariah Criminal Offences Enactment 2001.

"Any man found guilty of this offence faces a fine of RM5,000, three years' imprisonment or both.

"The court can also order the wife to return to her husband because according to the syariah law, both the man and woman have committed a sin.

"This is because the wife belongs to her husband. Some may argue that a wife is not the husband's property, but under the syariah law, the wife belongs to the husband and the husband is responsible for her from A to Z," he told reporters after handing out the Bantuan Pendahuluan Nafkah to 21 single mothers, today.

Also present was state Women, Welfare, Family Development and National Unity Exco Maliaman Kassim.

Wan Mohd Zakri also said that the offence was among the causes divorce cases in the state.

"The issue of husbands enticing other men's wives exists in Terengganu but not in the form of prosecution, but rather divorces.

"Some reasons for divorce include the wife leaving home with another man and eventually seeking a divorce," he said.

On Dec 15, the Federal Court ruled that Section 498 of the Penal Code, which makes it a crime for a man to entice a married woman, was unconstitutional.

A five-judge panel chaired by Chief Justice Tun Tengku Maimun Tuan Mat unanimously held that Section 498 unlawfully discriminates only on the ground of gender which violates Article 8(2) of the Federal Constitution.