The Federal Court has upheld the constitutionality of whipping, ruling in a split decision that the punishment does not violate the fundamental liberties guaranteed under the Federal Constitution.
Chief Justice Datuk Seri Wan Ahmad Farid Wan Salleh, delivering the majority judgment, dismissed claims that the sentence is cruel, inhumane, or discriminatory in nature.
He ruled that whipping does not breach Article 5 of the Constitution, which protects the right to life and personal liberty, nor Article 8, which guarantees equality before the law.
The decision, reported by the New Straits Times, came after three inmates mounted a legal challenge seeking to overturn their whipping sentences.
The applicants argued that the punishment poses a risk of death and is arbitrary, therefore violating their constitutional rights.
However, the court drew a clear distinction between whipping and capital punishment, stating that whipping is intended as a form of punishment rather than a deprivation of life.
“By their very purpose, penalties are designed to be punitive,” the Chief Justice said in his ruling.
He added that all lawful forms of punishment inevitably involve some level of discomfort or impact on personal dignity, and that whipping cannot be singled out as uniquely cruel or degrading on that basis.
Further details of the ruling are expected to follow.
