The theme for the Universal Declaration for Human Rights this year is “Equality, Freedom and Justice for All” and of course the first thought that comes to mind is the plight of the innocent victims of war and persecution in Gaza in the State of Palestine, in Afghanistan, in Iran, in Myanmar, in Nigeria and many others. I stand in solidarity with all defenders of human rights and those facing oppressive and authoritarian rule.
Back home, after a long time, the SUHAKAM Act 1999 was finally amended and I welcome this progressive move in accordance with institutional reforms under the MADANI Government.
In my debate speech in the Dewan Rakyat, holding on to the principle of independence, transparency, integrity and accountability, I called for the resignation of all SUHAKAM Commissioners from any political party positions as there is a real danger of conflict between independent thought and toeing the party line on contentious issues. SUHAKAM must be and be seen to be absolutely independent.
In addition to that, there is a dire need to restructure and strengthen human rights in our education system, which is, in my opinion, anachronistic and out of touch with present international trends. I call for vigorous reforms, especially to start with elements of human rights inculcation from the primary school levels and moving to the higher institutions.
There should be greater input of human rights sensitasation in the training syllabus of enforcement officers in all agencies, whether in the police force, reserve units, immigration officers, municipal council officers. Evidence is abundant, indicating a serious lack of understanding of our laws and procedures, including international best practices.
We must first include the term “refugees” and “asylum seekers” in the Malaysian legalese so as to not lump all as “Pendatang Asing Tanpa Izin” or PATI. This is just one clear instance of the flaws by our enforcement agencies.
This year, SUARAM reported that there is a rise by 85 per cent in custodial deaths under police custody. I call for a zero target on custodial deaths. It’s a fundamental human right to life embedded in our Constitution. It is essential to issue a tall order to PDRM in their appreciation of human rights in the performance of their duties.
The concept of human rights is not alien to Malaysians and given that Malaysia still sits on the UN Human Rights Council means that there is much to do in our own backyard. Human Rights is not a Western concept but is a Universal Concept, irrespective of race and creed accepted internationally.
In line with the theme for Human Rights Day, I call for everyone to be accorded the right to freedom, equality before the law, and justice. The universal values of the International Human Rights Declaration must be imbued into the spirit of our domestic laws.
“All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights” ~ First Article of the 1948 Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
Happy Human Rights Day!