Tuesday 16 October 2018

Ashbury alumnus and son of Taib Mahmud ordered to pay $9.4 million to ex wife


A Shariah Appeal Court in Kuala Lumpur has ordered Mahmud Bekir to pay RM30 million (C$9.4 million) for “mutaah” or conciliatory gifts to his former wife, Shahnaz Majid. Bekir is the son of Taib Mahmud, the governor of the state of Sarawak, and younger brother to Jamilah Taib, Chair of Ottawa’s Sakto Corp.
Abu Bekir Taib

The appeal court in Malaysia upheld a 2016 ruling, with the judge saying that  “there is no error under Islamic law and principles made by our Shariah High Court colleague in awarding the RM30 million.”

The court proceedings were notable for revealing some of the unsavoury aspect of Sharia law. Bekir’s lawyers claimed he found out his wife was not a virgin on their wedding night, and that according to Sharia law this would then be a mitigating factor with regard to compensation. The judge subsequently allowed Bekir’s lawyers to include this information in their submission, but to no avail.