Wanita India Yang Masuk Islam Tertipu

Kes Raimah Bibi Nordin, 40 yang sebelum ini adalah seorang wanita Hindu yang memeluk Islam seharusnya dipandang serius oleh masyarakat Islam di negara ini.

Wanita ini terpaksa berjuang bersendirian bagi mempertahankan hak beliau sebagai seorang ibu yang mahukan hak penjagaan anaknya.

Semasa perbicaraan dihadapan Hakim Mahkamah Tinggi Shah Alam, beliau telah dipermainkan oleh peguam suami beliau yang menyuruh beliau menandatangani surat perakuan penyerahan hak penjagaan anak mereka kepada bekas Suami beliau P.Marimuthu yang masih menganut agama Hindu.

(klik disini untuk melihat Klip temuramah bersama Raimah dan P. Marimuthu )

Wanita malang ini tidak diberikan apa-apa penjelasan berhubung kesan tindakan beliau itu oleh peguam berkenaan dan sikap Karpal Singh selaku peguam kepada suami beliau ini amatlah dikesali.

Seharusnya beliau tidak mengambil kesempatan diatas kenaifan Raimah dalam aspek perundangan dan perlu memberikan saranan agar Raimah melantik peguam bela sebelum mengikuti kes tersebut.

Raimah telah menandatangani surat akuan penyerahan hak penjagaan kepada suami beliau dalam keadaan tertipu dan tidak tahu apa-apa. Kes ini harus dibuka semula bagi memastikan Raimah mendapatkan hak beliau sebagai seorang ibu.

Walaupun permulaan kes tersebut adalah antara P.Marimuthu dan Jabatan Agama Islam Selangor (JAIS) tetapi yang menerima kesan yang teruk adalah Raimah sendiri. Dan menjadi persoalan disini, apakah yang telah dilakukan JAIS dalam membantu Raimah ini mendapatkan haknya? mengapa Raimah tidak diberikan bantuan guaman bagi menghadapi isu hak penjagaan anak ini?

Seharusnya JAIS bersedia bagi membantu dan memberikan pembelaan kepada golongan maualaf seperti Raimah khususnya dalam menghadapi masalah bagi memulakan hidup baru sebagai seorang mualaf yang pastinya akan kehilangan banyak perkara termasuklah kehilangan saudara mara seperti ini.

Sebagai ibu, Raimah berhak untuk memelihara 7 orang anaknya atau pun sebahagian darinya memandangkan pendapatan suami beliau juga tidak mencukupi untuk membela kesemua anak-anak beliau.

Dilema yang menyayat hati ini seharusnya menyentuh hati kita semua. Kita harus melihat bahawa inilah yang dikatakan sebagai ketidakadilan dalam sistem perundangan yang diwujudkan oleh manusia yang mana, hanya mereka yang bijak dan tahu mengambil kesempatan sahaja yang akan menang.

Tindakan Dewan Pemuda PAS Pusat yang menawarkan khidmat guaman percuma dalam lawatan YB. Salahuddin ke rumah beliau pada 17 Mei lalu wajar disambut oleh firma guaman lainnya sebagai satu cabaran untuk mereka turut tampil kehadapan. Semoga hak Raimah Bibi akan dikembalikan kepada beliau berkat dari keikhlasan para peguam kita yang turut membantu-Herman Samsudeen

——>Laporan Berita

Muslim or Hindu? A family ripped apart

RK Anand May 14, 07 11:51am

She wants her husband and their seven children to embrace Islam. But her husband is adamant about remaining a Hindu till his death.  After 21 years of marriage, the family of rubber-tappers P Marimuthu and Raimah Bibi is being torn apart for religious reasons. The matter became a national issue when the Selangor Islamic authorities separated Raimah and six children from Marimuthu. He then turned to the civil court for custody of the children aged between four and 14. Raimah, 40, later agreed to hand over custody to her husband. Although, she is now housed in a nearby village, she visits her children and husband regularly. Malaysiakini met the couple at their house in Ulu Yam, Selangor, to get their story. In an emotionally charged exchange, both husband and wife accused one another for their predicament. Raimah claimed that she was “misled” into signing the custody agreement and wants to take action against her husband’s lawyer, Karpal Singh. “I am illiterate, and my husband’s lawyer did not explain the letter to me in detail. He told me to sign and I signed it. I am going to file a case against him. Now, I don’t have any rights over the children, you have all the rights,” an upset Raimah told her husband. “Nobody comes to see me, not even the children. Even if the children are sick, only my husband can take them to the clinic. When the children were with me, many people came to see us. They gave rice and other things. They gave RM150 for expenses. But since the court case ended, nobody has come.” Raimah remained unconvinced when her husband explained that the letter was read to her in court and that she was still their mother, no matter what. “What more do you want? You get to visit them. I have only been given custody of the children. After they turn 18, they can decide for themselves,” said Marimuthu, 44, to his wife. “Is seeing them enough?” retorted Raimah in tears. “When they are above 18 and suppose they want to follow my religion, would you allow them? I was the one who got cheated. I was stupid to sign the (custody) letter. “He (Marimuthu) wanted the children and I signed the letter, and now his problem is solved but I am left alone. I have just have one daughter staying with me but I have no rights over her either.” Mayhem over formalities Asked if he knew that his wife is a Muslim when they got married, Marimuthu said her identity card states her name as ‘Raimah Bibi a/p (or ‘daughter of’) Noordin’ and not binti (the Muslim equivalent). “In her MyKad (which she obtained recently), her name is stated as Raimah binti Noordin and her religion as Islam. This is what caused all the problems,” he said. Raimah, who is shown wearing a tudung (head scarf) in the MyKad photograph, said she has been a Muslim from birth, but her husband claimed that she never informed him about this. “He said ‘if you had told me this, I would not have married you’. In the old identity card, all my family members have a/p (typically used for Indian Malaysian names) instead of binti. “I got mine changed to binti a few months back but he (Marimuthu) claims that someone had added it. How can he not know I am a Muslim? Both Raimah and Nordin are Muslim names.” Asked why their marriage was not legally registered, Marimuthu replied that it was not an important thing to do at the time. Raimah revealed that she had approached the religious authorities on her own accord and informed them that she was a Muslim. However, her husband does not believe this. Asked how the problem could be solved, Ramiah replied: “I already told them that I am a Muslim. How can I turn back again now, especially after the whole country knows the case? They (the Islamic authorities) will not allow me to turn back.” On why she decided to do this after more than two decades of marriage, she said: “I did this because I thought all of us would become Muslims. I never thought he (Marimuthu) would do all this (take the matter to court). If I had known, I wouldn’t have revealed that I’m Muslim.” Raimah also disclosed that she had not informed her husband of her intention to meet the religious authorities. Plight of family Marimuthu ruled out the possibility of converting so that the family can live together again. He also claimed that he was offered rewards such as a loan and land in return for his conversion. “I was born a Hindu and that’s how I wish to remain. If this question was posed to me six years ago, I might have agreed because I was forced to sleep with my family on the streets when our squatter house in Ampang was demolished. “But everyone, including Malay leaders that I approached for help, wanted money in return. Nobody helped me, so why I should convert?” On whether he would reconsider his decision for the sake of his children, Marimuthu was firm about raising them as Hindus and said he is prepared to face any hardship that arises. The rubber tapper, who earns between RM500 and RM1,200 a month depending on the weather, said: “I am confident I can take care of them even if I have to do it alone. I am content with the current arrangement, where my wife comes and visits the children. “When the children are old enough, let them decide which religion they want to follow. They (the religious authorities) have separated me from my wife in the name of religion, but they cannot separate her from the children. For that, I am happy.” Marimuthu claimed that, prior to this problem, religion had never been issue between him and his wife. “No matter what problems we faced, we were happy together.” In the past, he said, Raimah lived like a Hindu and was not averse to frequenting temples. Recalling the day that his wife and children were taken away, Marimuthu said he suffered from mental and emotional anguish. “I couldn’t sleep or eat. I was like a mad man. It is this that drove an uneducated man like me to seek help from DAP and go right up to Parliament. I was afraid that they would convert my children,” he added. Raimah admitted that she lied to Marimuthu that she was going out to get medicine, but had gone to the Islamic affairs office instead. “Contrary to what my husband thinks, I did not do this because I wanted to leave him. I still want to be with him. But he thinks someone has influenced me to do this,” she said. “I always wanted to do this (return to being a practising Muslim). I had this idea for a long time, but did not know how to go about it. Although, I went to temples and performed prayers, I could not forget my religion.” Hindu man gets custody of children Kuek Ser Kuang Keng May 3, 07 12:18pm Adjust font size: Rubber tapper P Marimuthu, who is seeking the release of his Muslim wife and children from the Islamic religious authorities, won custody of his seven children today. The Selangor Islamic Religious Department (Jais) this morning agreed to grant the custody of the children to Marimuthu to be raised as Hindus. They are expected to be handed over to Marimuthu by tomorrow. However, his Muslim wife Raimah Bibi Noordin would not be allowed to live  with her Hindu husband. She will however be granted access to her children. The agreement between Marimuthu and Raimah was made at the Shah Alam High Court. Jais was represented by Selangor state legal advisor Zauyah Loh Han. Earlier Marimuthu, 44 (left), withdrew his application in court for the release of his wife and six children who were taken away by Islamic religious officials last month. Another child was with an uncle at that time. His lawyer Karpal Singh informed justice Su Geok Yiam that the habeas corpus application had been overtaken by events as a settlement has been reached following an affidavit by Raimah that she remained a Muslim. In her affidavit, Raimah agreed that the children be returned to the father and their home in Selangor’s Kampung Baru Tambahan Ulu Yam to be brought up as Hindus. Raimah broke into tears when the judge asked her to confirm the decision to give up the custody. “Yes, I agree,” said the sobbing mother. She spoke to Marimuthu for a few minutes after the hearing, which was party conducted in Tamil. Both were seen crying and were emotionally distraughted. Marimuthu had in his affidavit said that he and his wife Raimah are Hindus, and their children have been brought up as Hindus. Hindu marriage The family’s problem started when seven Jais officers visited their house in Kampung Baru Tambahan Ulu Yam on April 2. The officials then told Marimuthu that his wife of 21 years, Raimah Bibi, was a Muslim and that she and their children – aged between four and 12 – must be placed in a rehabilitation centre. The husband then sought the help of DAP and filed the habeas corpus application to release his wife and children. Marimuthu had previously said that an ustaz (religious scholar) had told him to covert to Islam or threatened to charge him for khalwat (close proximity) with Raimah, 40. Raimah (right), who returned to help him with rubber tapping two days later, told him that Jais had placed the family in the nearby Kampung Melayu Liga Emas in Selangor’s Batang Kali. Marimuthu also does not know if his wife was a practising Muslim before they got married. Since then however, he said, the two of them have been practising Hindus. “We got married in a temple, according to Hindu rituals. All our kids were brought up as Hindus,” he said. He said Raimah, who was adopted by an Indian Muslim family, cannot remember her adopted mother and her late adopted father had approved of their relationship. His wife’s MyKad had stated her name as ‘Raimah Bibi binti Noordin’ and her religion as Islam. The couple did not apply to the National Registration Department to have this corrected either. New precedent Karpal said that the case ‘sets a new precedent’ with Jais agreeing to hand over the custody of the children from a Muslim mother to a non-Muslim father. “We are resorting to King’s Solomon justice. It is a good compromise,” he said in the court. Karpal (photo, seated) also said that the agreement does not affect the marriage status of the couple. “The status of marriage remains… (whether the marriage is unlawful or not) is not relevant to the arrangement.” When contacted later, Karpal told malaysiakini that the couple got married according to traditional custom without legal registration, hence the wife was considered as ‘common law wife’. In an immediate reaction, Opposition Leader Lim Kit Siang said the solution was not a “very happy arrangement as it leaves many issues open-ended which may cause problems in the future”. “It is sad and tragic that a happy couple and united family with seven children as a result of 21 years of marriage should be broken up by religious factors when family unity and love should be the paramount concern of all religions,” he added.