Tuesday, July 21, 2009

Muslim woman to be flogged for drinking beer in nightclub

The Daily Mail reports:
An Islamic court in Malaysia has sentenced a Muslim woman to be flogged for having a beer in a nightclub, a court official said today.

It is rare for a woman in Malaysia to be sentenced to caning - a punishment usually reserved for men.

Kartika Sari Dewi Shukarno was sentenced yesterday to six lashes and a fine of 5,000 ringgit ($1,400) for consuming alcohol, said a Shariah High Court official who declined to be identified because he was not authorised to make public statements.

Shukarno, a 32-year-old model, pleaded guilty in the court in eastern Pahang state to a charge of drinking beer when Islamic authorities raided a hotel nightclub in August 2008.

No word yet from America's Women's Studies departments on this one.