“WE believe in the freedom of speech and although we do not agree with the
minister, we would be the first to defend his right to give his views.”
Bar Council president Ambiga Sreenevasan said this yesterday
in response to remarks made by Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Datuk Seri Nazri Aziz that Ambiga was wrong in criticising the arrest
of five lawyers who had taken part in the `People’s Freedom Walk’ on Sunday.
Nazri was quoted as saying on Monday that he had lost faith in the Bar Council
over its stance on the walk.
Ambiga said she was surprised and disappointed with the arrests and charges
brought against the five lawyers, but added that it was for the court to decide
on the matter.
She said with the granting of bail to the lawyers by the court on Monday, it
showed that the justice system worked. She added that although the court was the
one to decide on the matter, the Bar Council was entitled to have its view of
the legal provision.
Four lawyers — Sivarasa Rasiah, Latheefa Bibi Koya, N. Surendran and Amer Hamzah
Arshad — were charged at the Kuala Lumpur Sessions Court on Monday with taking
part in an illegal assembly while the fifth lawyer, Edmund Bon, was charged with
obstruct ing Kuala Lumpur City Hall officers from performing their duties to
remove a banner in front of the Bar Council building in Lebuh Pas ar Besar at
12.15pm on the same day.
Four other activists — Eric Paulsen, Johny Andu @ Abu Bakar Adnan, Noorazah
Othaman and Indian national Ashraf Ali Sada Katullah — also claimed trial to
taking part in an illegal assembly.
On Monday, Ambiga had said that the council was not involved in the walk and it
was the initiative of several lawyers to mark World Human Rights Day.
She also said the council was only responsible for the World Human Rights Day
events held at the car park next to their building.
On Nazri’s suggestion that the Bar Council should register itself as a political
party and contest in the general elections if it feels so strongly about the
rights of the people, Ambiga said: “I’m certain that he was not serious when he
made the comment.”
She, however, added that the council had no problems with such criticisms.
“If the criticisms are constructive, we are ready to take
them on board.”
Ambiga brushed aside the idea of having disciplinary actions
taken against the five lawyers as suggested by Muslim Lawyers Association
president Tan Sri Abu Zahar Ujang.
The `People’s Freedom Walk’ has been a feature of the Bar’s `Fest ival of
Rights’, held annually since 2005 to commemorate International Human Rights Day
on Dec 10.
However, the council had on Dec 4 decided to call off the march.
In its official statement, the council said it took the position that the
requirement for an application for a permit under the Police Act to hold the
event violated the constitutional right to peaceful assembly.
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.
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).
News 
©
Subscribe to this comment's feed
Circular No 023/2012: Talk on ISO 9001 | 2008 Quality Management System Certification
