KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 22 — Tan Sri Abdul Hadi Awang, who returned unopposed as the PAS president for the 2023-2025 term, told Muslims today that it was their duty to oppose efforts to undermine the country’s shariah law.

Addressing delegates at the assembly in his closing speech during the 69th PAS Muktamar, Hadi equated such efforts to acts against both Allah and Prophet Muhammad.

"At present, our shariah law is being challenged. This is a challenge to Islam as well, and a challenge to our God the Almighty Allah, a challenge to our prophet and a challenge to Muslim Malays. This cannot be allowed.

"We are obligated to oppose such efforts in the form of attacks against the shariah. This struggle is far more wide-reaching than ICERD or the Rome Statute,” he said in reference to the two abortive attempts to ratify the international treaties during the short-lived Pakatan Harapan (PH) administration.

Signatories of the ICERD or the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination, are committed to ending all forms of racial discrimination in their countries, which some such as PAS take to mean a dismantling of pro-Bumiputera affirmative action and privileges here.

As for the Rome Statute, which is also known as the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court, it is an international treaty that establishes the International Criminal Court (ICC), the first permanent independent international court in the world that aims to end impunity for individuals that commit the most serious crimes known internationally.

However, detractors at that time saw the treaty’s ratification as an attack to the constitutional monarchy system that Malaysia practises and the country’s Rulers immunity to prosecution in the ICC for any war crimes committed.

A staunch Islamist, Hadi claimed in 2018 that ICERD was a ploy by the Freemasons to destroy religions, race and Malaysia.

While he did not cite examples in his speech today, Hadi’s remark comes amid a constitutional challenge of several Kelantan shariah provisions.

Two Muslims are challenging the constitutionality of 20 Shariah offences under the Kelantan state law, arguing that the state legislative assembly did not have the powers to create these provisions in a state law, as it is the federal government instead which holds the powers under the Federal Constitution to make laws on such crimes.

Chief Justice Tun Tengku Maimun Tuan Mat has since emphasised in the Federal Court that there was no dispute arising over Islam as the official religion of the Federation in the hearing.

The Marang MP further challenged the present government, albeit addressing them as the ‘PH government’, to act accordingly against these efforts to undermine shariah law which he claimed was the true essence of the ‘3R’ issues which concerns topics of race, religion, and royalty.

"This is the true essence of the 3Rs of which matters that cannot be challenged.

"If not, they (PH) are cowards,” he said.

Earlier, Hadi also called out the "oppressive” PH government for their acts of cruelty against the mass populace that are seemingly twisted to be seen otherwise as acts of justice and good governance.

"When we become the government, we must never inflict cruelties upon others, do not seek revenge, this is what was taught by Prophet Muhammad.

"We must be patient. We should consider oppression a lesson in our struggle. Do not be like PH, where a distorted narrative is played up instead to shield such cruelties,” he said.