LETTER | Entire Suhakam failed, not only its chairperson

LETTER | CSO Platform for Reform deplores the views of the current Human Rights Commission of Malaysia (Suhakam) chairperson Rahmat Mohamad when asked about concerns that adopting a Malaysian context may sideline vulnerable groups, particularly the LGBTQ community.

However, he also emphasised that the commission’s role is to uphold human rights in a local context (acuan tempatan), which in our view is both appalling and regressive.

It is due to this “acuan tempatan” that we are suffering on so many fronts, and it would not be surprising if Suhakam loses its Paris Principles compliance Grade A status, and loses its international standing.

Trying to reframe human rights into an “acuan tempatan” should never be the task of Suhakam as most politicians would love this narrow and dangerous definition of the rights of people in Malaysia.

The task of Suhakam is to upgrade the protection and promotion of human rights in Malaysia following the interpretation of the Federal Constitution Part 2 on fundamental liberties and the universal standards of human rights accepted internationally.

On July 3 last year, CSO Platform issued a statement citing fears that the reputation of Suhakam would be undermined by a team of weak commissioners, as a majority of the newly appointed human rights commissioners did not inspire confidence that they would be able to uphold human rights in the country.

A year on, unfortunately, our fears have come true.

Recently, the chair has been urged by NGOs locally and internationally to go on garden leave pending an inquiry against him concerning allegations of power abuse and racism.

The commission is designed as a collegial decision-making process. The chair does not have veto power and should never be allowed to do so.

The failure of the other commissioners to speak up on the skewed position of the chair only can mean that this commission as a whole fails in its duty to defend human rights as a universal concept for all peoples in Malaysia.

It is incumbent on each commissioner appointed by the Agong to state his/her position on the predicament created by the chair and enabled by a silent set of commissioners.

CSO Platform for Reform, a coalition of more than 60 NGOs, reiterates our call for reform as follows:

1. A transparent and independent process of appointing the commissioners. We urge the Madani government to devise an independent process for appointing Suhakam commissioners, whose appointments are currently made through the Prime Minister’s Department.

2. We call on Azalina Othman Said, the Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (Law and Institutional Reform) and the Legal Affairs Division of the Prime Minister’s Department (BHEUU) to look into the reforms that have been proposed, as well as to look into the request of Suhakam staff to investigate their chairperson;

3. We call on the other commissioners to state their position on this issue; do they uphold human rights principles as outlined in the UDHR;

4. We call for honesty and reflection, that if the incumbent commissioners feel that they are unable to adhere to and uphold the human rights principles as outlined in the UDHR and in Suhakam’s mandate, and insist on “acuan tempatan” approach, then they should consider resigning their positions; and

5. We would also like to call for more inclusive and effective consultations on institutional reform with civil society.

We would like to remind the current Suhakam commissioners that they have a duty to uphold human rights in line with the United Nations’ Universal Declaration on Human Rights and the Federal Constitution Part 2 on fundamental liberties as an independent oversight empowered national institution.

This is important if we are to check on the government to ensure it continues to play its primary duty and obligation in realising human rights for all.

CSO PLATFORM FOR REFORM is a coalition of 60 civil society organisations (CSOs) focusing on institutional reform.

The views expressed here are those of the author/contributor and do not necessarily represent the views of Malaysiakini.