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MADPET (MALAYSIANS AGAINST DEATH PENALTY AND TORTURE) calls for the immediate removal of the clauses imposing the death penalty in the Water Services Industry Bill 2006, which came up for second reading in Parliament today(10/5/2006).

Section 121, under Part X : General Offences and Penalties of this Bill, which deals with the offence of water contamination provides that “…a person who contaminates or causes to be contaminated any watercourse or the water supply system or any part of the watercourse or water supply system with any substance (a) with the intention to cause death; (b) with the knowledge that he is likely to cause death; or (c) which would likely endanger the life of any person ….[and]… where death results shall be punished with death or imprisonment…”

The Malaysian Bar, a body representing over 12,000 Malaysian lawyers, at its 60th Annual General Meeting held on 18/3/2006 passed a Resolution calling for the abolition of the death penalty in Malaysia, an immediate moratorium on all executions pending abolition and the commutation of the sentences of all persons currently on death row.

It must be pointed out that a recent television poll done by RTM 2 during the Hello on Two programme on 7/5/2006 showed that 64% of Malaysians are for the abolition of the death penalty in Malaysia. This program has an estimated audience of 80,000. It is thus important that members of Parliament, the representatives of the people respond to the aspirations of Malaysians and remove the death penalty from the Water Bill and all other laws of Malaysia.

It is ironic that at a time when the nations of the world are rapidly moving towards abolition of the death penalty, Malaysia is once again unnecessarily and imprudently extending the range of capital offences. An average of three countries have abolished the death penalty each year over the last decade 122 countries have abolished capital punishment in law or practice as opposed to 74 countries which retain the death penalty;

We therefore call on all Parliamentarians, from both the Barisan National ruling coalition and the Opposition, who value human rights, justice and mercy to immediately cause the removal of the provisions that provide for the sentence of death.

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