COMMENT | When lawyers walked again

COMMENT | Last Friday, hundreds of lawyers gathered at the Padang Merbok car park in Kuala Lumpur in support of judicial independence.

The ‘Walk for Judicial Independence’ was pursuant to a Malaysian Bar resolution adopted at the extraordinary general meeting of the Bar.

The EGM, which took place at the end of May, condemned, “in the strongest possible terms”, any interference at any time with the independence of the judiciary, and breaches of the fundamental principle of separation of powers.

The Bar at the EGM also resolved that the Bar should organise and lead a peaceful protest for this purpose.

The EGM and the subsequent peaceful protest were a reaction to the way the MACC publicly announced the commencement of a criminal investigation on Court of Appeal judge Mohd Nazlan Mohd Ghazali, and disclosed the name of the judge to the public.

Lawyers were not happy with what was perceived to be an attempt to cast aspersions and sully the good name of the said judge. Some also believe that it could be an attempt to intimidate other judges who are presiding over high-profile cases, to ensure that favourable decisions are made for certain individuals.

Make no mistake, it is not that judges cannot be investigated or that they are above the law. Judges, like all other officers of the state, can be investigated for alleged corruption. However...