by TAN YI LIANG
PETALING
JAYA: The Federal Court panel which sentenced imam Hoslan Husin to a
year’s jail for throwing his shoes at them should have been tempered by
mercy.
Lawyers
for Liberty campaign director Fadiah Nadwa Fikri told theSun yesterday
that the sentence handed down on the 46-year-old father of seven was
excessive and unnecessary.
“We
feel the sentence is disproportionate, considering that the imam was
emotional on the day of the offence as his appeal was thrown out based
on a technicality,” she said, adding that the court failed to consider
Hoslan’s apology for his emotional outburst.
She said that previous contempt sentences have only been for a few days jail, saying that the court should
have been proportionate in the punishment meted down.
“A
year is outrageous. Nobody condones throwing a shoe at a judge, but the
power of the court cannot be exercised in an extreme manner.
“In this case they could have just reprimanded him,” said Fadiah.
Hoslan
was sentenced to a year in jail on March 8 for contempt of court by a
panel comprising Chief Judge of Malaya Tan Sri Zulkefli Ahmad Makinudin
and Federal Court Justices Datuk Suryadi Halim Omar and Datin Paduka
Zaleha Zahari.
Hoslan
threw his shoes at this three-member bench on Feb 22 during proceedings
between 10.15am and 10.30am after the panel dismissed his application
to hear his appeal.
Asked
about laws behind contempt of court, Fadiah said the sentencing powers
for contempt were very wide and left at the discretion of the judge, who
should hand down a sentence at the moment of the offence.
“The
power of a judge when it comes to contempt is very wide. They can set
any duration they like, it is an incidental power of the court and this
is why democratic societies are moving away from relying on this power,”
she said.
Fadiah
said that courts were moving away from jail sentences for contempt in
more democratic societies and allowing criticism of the judiciary.
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