This Memorandum entitled “Mendukung dan Melindungi Kebebasan Badan Kehakiman dan Mengekalkan Keyakinan Umum Terhadap Badan Kehakiman” / “Upholding and Protecting the Independence of the Judiciary and the Preservation of Public Confidence in the Judiciary” was submitted to the Honourable Deputy Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (Parliament and Law), YB Datuk Wira Hajah Mas Ermieyati binti Samsudin during the Walk for Judicial Independence, Padang Merbok, on 17 June 2020.
The Malaysian Bar convened an Extraordinary General Meeting (“EGM”) on 27 May 2022 and resolved inter alia, to condemn the unprecedented manner in which the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (“MACC”) had publicly announced the commencement of criminal investigation of a Superior Court Judge, and disclosed the name of the judge to the public, for an indefinite period and without proper closure, which is tantamount to an act of intimidation against the Judiciary.
The Malaysian Bar strongly views that any investigation of Superior Court Judges by law enforcement agencies must be done in a manner that does not erode judicial independence and public confidence in the Judiciary. The Malaysian Bar also recognises that any complaint against Superior Court Judges and investigation by law enforcement agencies, if given undue and unwarranted publicity, will have a far-reaching impact on the independence of the Judiciary, and the public confidence reposited in the Judiciary.
The Malaysian Bar, at its EGM, had also resoundingly resolved to hold a peaceful assembly as a form of protest against the interference with the independence of the Judiciary, and breaches of the fundamental principle of separation of powers. The Malaysian Bar’s “Resolution on Upholding and Protecting the Independence of the Judiciary and the Preservation of Public Confidence in the Judiciary” is accessible here on the Malaysian Bar website.