The Malaysian Human Rights Commission (Suhakam) was criticised today by civil society groups for not publicising the government's responses to its observations and recommendations made since it was set up in 1999.

Participants at the "Suhakam's After Three years: Recommendations for Promotion and Protection of Human Rights and Government Response" in Penang called for the commission to be more transparent on the issue.

The call came following Professor Dr Chiam Heng Keng's presentation of government responses to the body's recommendation during the panel discussion. There was a general consensus that it was too "shallow".

In her session, Chiam merely stated that on March 17, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs sent a 93-page response to Suhakam for observations and recommendations made in its 2001 and 2002 annual reports.

She said that the responses were related to several of the commission's reports including freedom of assembly, right of detention under the Internal Security Act, rights of remand prisoners, rights of young prisoners, other types of detention and rights of indigenous people in Sarawak.

However, she did not say what the responses were and whether they were positive or negative.

Third seminar

Organised by ERA Consumers, social reform movement Aliran and Consumers Association of Penang, the third national consultation seminar to evaluate the role of Suhakam was attended by about 250 people from workers' unions, women's and human rights groups.

The first seminar was held in Kuala Lumpur in 2001 and the second in Ipoh last year.

Others in the panelist were Human Rights Society (Hakam) president Ramdas Tikamdas, Women's Crisis and Advocacy Centre representative Honey Tan Lay Ean, Malaysiakini editor-in-chief Steven Gan, Aliran president P Ramakrishnan and Group of Concerned Citizen representative Charles Santiago.

United Nations Special Rapporteur for Independence and Lawyer Judges Param Cumarasamy facillitated the open session.

Asked about the delay in publicising the government responses, Suhakam vice-chairperson Harun Hashim, who presented the keynote address in the morning, said that the commission was currently "studying the government's responses".

"We have just received the response [in March]. Our research team is looking into it and once we have read all of the report, we will make it public," he told malaysiakini.

"The responses have various sections and that is why we are taking some time. But we hope to have it out by the end of this year as we have to put it into our 2003 report scheduled for March next year," he added.