Press Release: Malaysian Bar Urges the Malaysian Government to Accede to the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court without Delay
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Tuesday, 13 December 2011 02:14pm
The 10th Assembly of State Parties to the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court opened at the United Nations in New York City on 12 December 2011. Both the Malaysian Government and Malaysian civil society (represented by the Malaysian Bar), will attend these meetings.
Malaysia participated in the United Nations Diplomatic Conference of Plenipotentiaries on the Establishment of an International Criminal Court in Rome in 1998. It was also a signatory to the Final Act of the United Nations Diplomatic Conference of Plenipotentiaries on the Establishment of an International Criminal Court. However, it has yet to become a State Party to the Rome Statute.
In March 2011, the Malaysian Government announced its intention to accede to the Rome Statute.
The events leading up to this announcement were encouraging. On 27-28 May 2010, the Malaysian Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department in charge of Law and Parliamentary Affairs, Dato’ Seri Mohamed Nazri Abdul Aziz, made a promise at the Kampala meeting of the Parliamentarians for Global Action to submit the accession papers to the Rome Statute to the Malaysian Cabinet upon his return from that meeting.
PETALING JAYA: The draft amendments to the Universities and University Colleges Act (UUCA) 1971 are expected to be tabled in Parliament in March next year.
Higher Education Minister Datuk Seri Mohamed Khaled Nordin said the draft amendments should be ready by the end of next month.
“A committee overseeing amendments to the UUCA has been set under the ministry’s Legal Unit,” he said in a statement.
Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak announced in Parliament last month that Section 15 of the UUCA would be amended to respect the constitutional rights of students aged 21 and above.
Mohamed Khaled said the committee comprises representatives from the ministry and several local and private universities.
WHO becomes the Yang di-Pertuan Agong is determined by the rotation list decided by the Conference of Rulers and is not stipulated under the Federal Constitution.
This means that the Sultan of Kedah, Tuanku Abdul Halim Mu'adzam Shah, will have risen to the top of the rotation list twice in order for him to be appointed Yang di-Pertuan Agong again.
Besides being the 14th Yang di-Pertuan Agong, Tuanku Abdul Halim was also the country's fifth King.
Bar Council Constitutional Law Committee chairman Syahredzan Johan said although it was up to the rulers whom they wanted to elect as King, selection was actually done by way of rotation as well as in accordance with the order of names on the list.
The process of enacting the Peaceful Assembly Bill 2011 and the public debate and disappointment this has engendered illustrate some of the worst, and yet also some of the most encouraging, aspects of the law and legal culture in Malaysia.
When Prime Minister Najib Razak announced on Malaysia Day this year his government’s plan to annul three of the four Proclamations of Emergency (those of 1966, 1969 and 1977) and the Emergency Ordinances made under them, replace the Internal Security Act 1960 with a more enlightened anti-terrorism law, and review or abolish laws inconsistent with the constitutional right to freedom of speech, assembly and association, many people dared to hope that his UMNO-led Barisan Nasional government had finally appreciated the magnitude of public disapproval, manifest in the reduced majority for UMNO in the March 2008 election, and the massive assembly of citizens rallying on July 9 this year to support Bersih 2.0’s campaign for clean and fair elections, to choose but two of many examples.
KUALA LUMPUR: There is no need for Christmas carollers to apply for a police permit but they can voluntarily notify the nearest police station of their activities, Home Minister Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Hussein said.
He said Bukit Aman had confirmed that there was no need to get a police permit for Christmas carolling.
“(Christmas carollers) can notify the nearest police station if they are concerned,” he stated in a tweet yesterday.
Hishammuddin said he had asked Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Ismail Omar to clarify the matter to avoid any confusion among the people.
It was reported yesterday that the Johor police wanted those organising Christmas carolling to apply for permits two weeks before their programme.
KUALA LUMPUR: When Kedah Gerakan Youth chief Tan Keng Liang was invited to a debate with Bar Council's enfant terrible Edmund Bon, little did he know that close to 300 people would turn up at a cramped shoplot on the fourth floor to hear him speak.
No one could blame Tan, who had been let down several times after challenges of debate with different parties fell through.
But this time, the debate did take place and the showdown on the Peaceful Assembly Bill was at the Pusat Rakyat Loyar Burok yesterday with the majority of the audience mobilised via Twitter and Facebook.
The crowd was from the surrounding urban areas and their “claws” were out for Tan, who has been tweeting actively about his pro-establishment views for the past year.
Death in custody – L Yoges Rao (Sitiawan police station; 11 Dec 2003)
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Monday, 12 December 2011 08:03am
Eight years ago, on 11 Dec 2003, L Yoges Rao died while being held overnight at a police station in Sitiawan, Perak. The 22-year old had been arrested on 10 Dec 2003 and was then taken to his sister Mahaletchumy’s house by six plainclothes police personnel.
According to a news report, his sister claimed that the police personnel assaulted L Yoges Rao, first in her presence and then in a locked room, resulting in him screaming in pain and pleading for the police to stop assaulting him.
Although the burial permit for L Yoges Rao reportedly stated that he had died of stomach ulcer, photographs of the deceased showed various marks and injuries on his body. Mahaletchumy subsequently lodged a police report on her brother’s death at the Air Tawar police station.
Despite the requirement that all custodial deaths be investigated by inquiries conducted pursuant to Chapter XXXII of the Criminal Procedure Code, it does not appear that an inquest has been conducted into L Yoges Rao’s death.
IN 1996, when my clients and I were negotiating with the Attorney-General’s Chambers, led by its then head of the advisory and international division Tan Sri Abdul Gani Patail, I warned that too high a rate might cause the public to refuse payment to privatised entities out of civil disobedience.
Then, both my learned friends across the table and my own clients were rather amused by my argument.
Today, this term “civil disobedience” appears to be the “in-thing” among politicians, particularly those from the opposition, backed by non-governmental organisations and civil rights and liberties movements.
It is becoming a popular tactical weapon used by them to justify their violation of laws which, in their view, are “unjust”, apart from indulging in some polemics.
Hence, we saw various street protests being held without a police permit in contravention of the Police Act (1967).
Press Release - Democratic Space in Malaysia: Realising Aspirations of Human Rights
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Friday, 09 December 2011 03:35pm
The Malaysian Bar notes the decision by the Higher Education Minister, Datuk Seri Mohamed Khaled Nordin, as reported in the media, to appoint a committee (albeit subject to Cabinet approval) to draft the amendments to section 15 of the Universities and University Colleges Act (UUCA) 1971. The stated intention of this committee is to permit university students above the age of 21 the freedom to join political parties and participate in political activity.
We, however, remind the government of its obligations under the Convention of the Rights of the Child (CRC), to which it acceded in February 1995. The CRC contains provisions that recognise the right of a child – defined as anyone under the age of 18 - to freedom of assembly and expression. The proposed intention to amend section 15 of the UUCA will thus still be contrary to Malaysia’s international law obligations. If those under the age of 18 are entitled to such rights under the CRC, the same rights must apply to those aged 18 and above. The proposed amendment, while a widening of existing Malaysian law, is nonetheless not sufficiently broad to bring the position in Malaysia in line with international human rights norms.
2012 Hotel Corporate Rates Attending seminars? Going for a holiday? Click on the link above to check out the list of hotel corporate rates for Members of the Bar, which is updated regularly.
Talk on Intellectual Property Law (10 Feb 2012) Organised by the Selangor Bar Committee, the talk on “Intellectual Property Law” will take place at 5:00 pm, at the Selangor Bar Committee Auditorium, on 10 Feb 2012 (Friday). The talk will feature Bahari Yeow Tien Hong. Click on the link above for more details.
The Case of the Missing Penang Lawyer: Charity Treasure Hunt 2012 (12 Feb 2012) Organised by the Penang Bar Committee Social Subcommittee in aid of the National Autism Society of Malaysia (NASOM), this event will take place at Straits Quay, Penang, on 12 Feb 2012 (Sunday). Deadline for registration is 6 Feb 2012 (Monday). Click on the link above for more details.
Seminar on the Fundamentals of Bankruptcy Proceedings (21 Feb 2012) Organised by the Kuala Lumpur Bar Professional Development Committee, the seminar on “The Fundamentals of Bankruptcy Proceedings”, featuring Sanjeev Kumar Rasiah, will take place at 3:00 pm, at the Kuala Lumpur Bar Auditorium, on 21 Feb 2012 (Tuesday). Click on the link above for more details.
Seminar on the Fundamentals of Conveyancing (24 Feb 2012) Organised by the Kuala Lumpur Bar Professional Development Committee, this seminar featuring Jeremiah R Gurusamy will take place at 3:00 pm, at the Kuala Lumpur Bar Auditorium, on 24 Feb 2012 (Friday). Click on the link above for more details.
Mediation Skills Training Course (29 Feb to 4 Mar 2012) Organised by Bar Council, the Mediation Skills Training Course will take place at 8:30 am to 5:30 pm, at Raja Aziz Addruse Auditorium, Bar Council, on 29 Feb to 4 Mar 2012 (Wednesday to Sunday). Deadline for registration and payment is 17 Feb 2012 (Friday). Click on the link above for more details.
Talk on “Land Fraud: An Australian Perspective” (13 Mar 2012) Organised by IGIL, GSGSG and UUM COLGIS, this free talk featuring Quintin George Rozario of Delta Law, Brisbane, Australia, will take place at 9:00 am, at Dewan Seminar A, Pusat Konvensyen, Universiti Utara Malaysia, Kedah, on 13 Mar 2012 (Tuesday). To RSVP, contact Mr Abutt (04-928 4397; abutt@uum.edu.my).
The 10th Assembly of State Parties to the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court opened at the United Nations in New York City on 12 December 2011. Both the Malaysian Government and Malaysian civil society (represented by the Malaysian Bar), will attend these meetings.
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Circular No 019/2012: Change of Address for Pejabat Pengarah Tanah dan Galian Wilayah Persekutuan
