Associate Professor Shamrahayu to give public lecture on ethnic relations

Miri – 15 October 2015 – Distinguished Fellow and Associate Professor Dr. Shamrahayu Abdul Aziz will give a public lecture on ‘Ethnic Relations and Malaysia’s Constitution’ on Saturday, 17 October 2015 at Curtin University, Sarawak Malaysia (Curtin Sarawak).

The lecture, which will start at 9 am in the university’s Auditorium, will touch on issues relating to ethnic relations in Malaysia, especially recent issues that have come to the surface and become hot topics of conversation in coffee shops and on social media in the country.

Dr. Shamrahayu is from Kelantan and is a lecturer at the International Islamic University of Malaysia. She was a holder of two law degrees before pursuing Master and Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) degrees in Criminal Law and Human Rights.

Since July 2014, she was seconded to the Institute of Islamic Understanding Malaysia (IKIM) as a Distinguished Fellow and her areas of expertise are Malaysia’s constitution, Islamic criminal law and human rights.

Currently, she is leading a team of 20 top law experts in the country to conduct a study on harmonising the civil and Syariah legal systems.

Dr. Shamrahayu has published 40 journal articles and published books which include Criminal Procedure in Syariah Courts and Issues on Enforcement of Islamic Criminal Law in 2010 and before that, she edited a book Isu-Isu Kebebasan Beragama – Penguatkuasaan Undang-Undang Moral in 2009.

Her latest book published in 2014 was Kontrak Sosial, Perlembagaan Perseketuan 1957: Pengikat  Jati Diri Bangsa Merdeka, whichwon The Best Book  Award.

Beside publishing journal articles and books, Dr. Shamrahayu has written about 300 feature articles in various national newspapers and magazines and has presented more than 100 papers at seminars and conferences.

She also sits on 11 committees appointed by the federal and state governments including the Technical Committee on Syariah Law at federal level, Islamic Consultative Council and Steering Committee on National Human Rights Action Plan, among others.

The talk at Curtin Sarawak is being organised by lecturers of the university’s Department of Language Studies and Humanities teaching Ministry of Higher Education units.

Members of the public, especially those from political parties, non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and community associations, interested to attend the talk can get more information by calling Mawi Taip at 014-575 7909, Valerie Velina at 016-890 5420 or Ariffin Mohamad at 016-876 6488.

Associate Professor Dr. Shamrahayu Abdul Aziz.