By Malaysia Kini
A decade since its establishment on Sept 9, 1999, the Human Rights Commission of Malaysia (Suhakam) is gratified that an increasing number of Malaysians are now familiar with the notion of human rights. More and more people are coming forward to use the mechanism of Suhakam which the commission tries to deal with promptness and diligence, within its budgetary and statutory limitations.
These include those who are disadvantaged and vulnerable, such as indigenous peoples, women and children and the aged and the economically deprived, among others, who have no other recourse to channel their grievances.
In 2009 Suhakam continued to undertake a number of human rights-related activities, including, among others, a Public Enquiry into the Arrest and Detention of Lawyers of the Kuala Lumpur Legal Aid Centre at the Brickfields Police Station on May 7, 2009, visits to police lock-ups and detention centres (Prisons and Immigration Centres), human rights training for Police and Rela officers, visits and dialogues on the rights of indigenous peoples, meetings with NGOs, workshops on the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) and Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (Cedaw), human rights colloquium for the judiciary, roundtable discussions on the right of the Mentally Challenged Persons to Care with Dignity, and on the rights of Older Persons, and human rights talks and exhibitions for university and college students.
Over the years, the commission had worked tirelessly to address human rights issues and raise awareness through dialogues and consultations with various stakeholders. It had carried out public inquiries; conducted research; organised workshops, forums and roundtable discussions on human rights issues; recommended the repeal of the Internal Security Act 1960 (ISA), the review of the Printing Presses and Publications Act, Section 27 of the Police Act and the Official Secrets Act, and the abolition of the death penalty and natural life sentence.
While Suhakam welcomes the move to amend the ISA, which it hopes is a first step towards its eventual repeal, it calls upon the government to ensure that the amendments adhere to human rights principles vis-a-vis the detainees' right to personal liberty, the right to a fair trial and the right to be presumed innocent until proven guilty as enunciated in Articles 3, 10 and 11 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
The commission has also formed an ad-hoc committee on Universal Periodic Review (UPR) with respect to the implementation by the Government of its UPR commitments. It had urged that major legislative bills be referred to the Select Committee of Parliament and state assemblies and that the government accedes and observes various human rights instruments and treaties, especially those that have been under consideration for a long time.
Notwithstanding these efforts, Suhakam continues to face a number of challenges, not the least of which is the need to continue to engage with government agencies, especially those with enforcement powers, so as to create greater awareness, understanding and observance of, and respect for, human rights, as well as of the statutory mandate and role of Suhakam.
Suhakam will continue to deal with a number of human rights complaints that have been constantly lodged to the commission which includes police inaction, arbitrary arrest and detention, excessive use of force by the enforcement officers, selective investigations, and the denial of the right to peaceful assembly and to freedom of speech and expression.
In an effort to uphold the rights of the indigenous peoples, the commission has recently formed the Indigenous Peoples' Rights Committee to look into the plight of the indigenous peoples relating to their rights to the native customary lands, and access to education and health services. The commission is currently accumulating facts and information before considering holding a national inquiry into the rights of the indigenous peoples.
Another issue of concern is relating to religious converts. The commission had submitted a memorandum to the Rulers' Conference on Oct 3, 2009 and had recommended uniformity in the states and federal territories' administration of syariah laws and for a clear procedure in conversion cases, an issue which Suhakam would be following up with the attorney-general's chambers.
A perennial challenge is to persuade the government to have a parliamentary debate on Suhakam's annual report to Parliament which the commission had never failed to submit every year. The commission believes that such a debate would allow the people to better appreciate the state of human rights observance in the country, while allowing the commission to benefit from the views of the members of Parliament from both sides of the aisle.
As an advisory body without enforcement and prosecution powers, the commission encourages members of Parliament to pick up the issues and recommendations contained in the annual report and work towards the human rights betterment of the people as the nation progresses towards attaining its developed country status in 2020.
For its part, Suhakam will make renewed efforts to convince and encourage the government to implement its numerous recommendations and take a more serious view of human rights violations that have been highlighted in its reports and statements. Yet another challenge is the upcoming review of Suhakam's 'A' status by the United Nations International Coordinating Committee of National Human Rights Institutions for the Promotion and Protection of Human Rights (ICC).
While the government has taken speedy action to amend Act 597, which Suhakam very much appreciated, the issue will be revisited and a definitive position on the commission's international ranking will be made this October by the ICC, within the context of Malaysia's compliance with the Paris Principles relating to the Status of National Institutions adopted by the United Nations General Assembly in 1993. It is Suhakam's earnest hope that it will remain an 'A' status national human rights institution which would certainly inspire the commission to undertake more serious efforts for the attainment of a higher level of human rights observance and promotion in the country.
However, irrespective of the outcome of the ICC meeting relating to its status, Suhakam will continuously and diligently work to promote and protect human rights in the country. Suhakam applauds some positive actions taken by the government to protect and uphold human rights, namely, the inclusion of 'gender' as one of the grounds prohibited from discrimination; improvement of conditions in detention centres and police lock-ups; ratification of the Convention against Corruption, and of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD); the enactment of the Anti-Trafficking in Persons Act 2007; the recent removal of Articles 1, 13 and 15 of the Convention of the Rights of the Child (CRC); withdrawal of reservations to Articles 5(a), 7(b) and 16(2) of Cedaw; improvement of public housing and accessibility to healthcare; and making primary education compulsory and free.
These are, indeed, positive steps in the right direction towards the amelioration of the human rights condition in Malaysia. It is hoped that further such steps would be taken by the government so that by raising its standards it would not be unreasonable to expect, at some point in the future, for the country to join the ranks of the leading nations of the world in terms of their observance of human rights principles and practice. Certainly, it is a goal worth striving for.
Towards this end, Suhakam will build on what it had achieved in the past and aside from engaging in a dialogue process with the relevant government agencies, it will continue to unremittingly engage and establish good working relationships with other stakeholders, such as members of Parliament, non-governmental organisations (NGOs), civil society organisations (CSOs) and the media.
The commission believes that the promotion and protection of human rights in the country is not the exclusive domain or prerogative of a single entity, group, organisation or individual but is the concern of every member of an enlightened society who understands and is prepared to assert these rights as a good and law-abiding citizen, as long as it is pursued with a sense of responsibility.
The writer is chairperson, Human Rights Commission of Malaysia (Suhakam).
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