KOTA BARU: The Narathiwat Islamic Council in Thailand has allowed marriage solemnisation ceremonies to be held at mosques under its jurisdiction with immediate effect.
However, the council's vice-president Abdul Aziz Che Mamat said it would only approve solemnisation ceremonies for its citizens and not those from Malaysia.
He said couples from Malaysia were still prohibited from tying the knot in the country following the lockdown and restriction travel ban due to Covid-19.
"Like the Kelantan government, we have also allowed our citizens to get married recently with full compliance of the standard operating procedures (SOPs) set by the council.
"Malaysian couples are still not allowed to tie the knot here as both borders remained closed," he added.
Before the pandemic struck, Abdul Aziz said between 60 and 100 Malaysian couples got married in the province every month.
"They came from many states in Malaysia but a majority of them were from Kelantan and the other two east coast states.
"Most Malaysian men decided to cross over to Thailand to get marries either to take second wives or due to other problems," he added.
Kelantan recently allowed marriage solemnisation ceremonies to be held at private premises and mosques.
State Islamic Religious Affairs Department director Datuk Che Mohd Rahim Jusoh said, the ceremonies must not exceed 30 minutes and be conducted in full compliance with the SOPs set by the department.
Apart from that, he said only 10 fully vaccinated people, including the bride and bridegroom, marriage official, wali or legal guardian of the bride and witnesses were allowed to gather.
He added that only a fully vaccinated official was allowed to solemnise the marriage.
He said the marriage ceremony could face cancellation if the SOPs were breached.