The proposal to form a Legal Academy as the alternative to the Bar Council has received more support from lawyers who are upset with the Malaysian Bar's resolution condemning police brutality during the April 28 Bersih 3.0 rally.

Today's front page report of Umno-owned daily Utusan Malaysia says several members of the Malaysian Bar want the alternative proposal to be executed as soon as possible.

The Malaysian Bar is the only professional organisation that represents some 14,000 lawyers in the country. Its leadership committee, elected by the members, is called the Bar Council.

Last week the Bar Council called an extraordinary general meeting (EGM), attended by 1,270 members, to condemn the excessive, indiscriminate and wrongful use of tear gas and water cannons by the police on the Bersih 3.0 rally participants, and demanded a public apology from the government and the police.

The rally was held by electoral reform coalition Bersih, which is co-chaired by former Bar Council president Ambiga Sreenevasan.

The resolutions passed against the government and the police during the EGM have annoyed some lawyers who have accused the Bar Council of deviating from its role to uphold the legal profession and to protect the welfare of its members.

One of the lawyers, Nordin Yusoff, told Utusan Malaysia that the "hasty decision" of the Bar Council EGM in passing the resolution condemning the police was "clear evidence" that the council has gone against the will of the majority members and had become the political tool of a certain interested party.

'It has been done in Singapore'

"I support the proposal to form a Legal Academy because it has been done in Singapore, which is led by Singapore's chief judge, with the republic's Bar Council placed under the academy.

"I was informed that a draft Bill to form a Legal Academy was introduced in this country but strongly rejected by the Bar Council which still wants to monopolise the legal practice," Nordin is quoted as saying.

He wants the Bar Council to come under the authority of the proposed legal Academy to ensure that the transparency and integrity of the legal profession in Malaysia is guaranteed.

NONE The proposal has also received the thumbs up from Zainul Rijal Abu Bakar of the Malaysian Muslim Lawyers Association, who said it would end bureaucracy and monopoly in the Bar Council.

Zainul Rijal ( left ) said in the United Kingdom, lawyers were free to join any of four lawyers' associations in the country.

"Like it or not, lawyers in Malaysia are forced to become the members of the Malaysian Bar in order to practise law, although many of the views made by the body are not shared by us, especially those involving Islamic issues," Utusan quotes him as saying.

Another alternative, Zainul Rijal said, was to let the attorney-general head the Bar Council, as practised by some countries.

Another lawyer, Abu Backer Sidek, claims that an alternative body would allow lawyers to perform their profession without any political element.

"I have moved forward a suggestion to form a Malaysian Federal Lawyers Council, with its members being free from the influence of any political party.

NONE "Actually, I have lost my patience with Bar Council's view that supports Bersih and many other issues which are not agreed to by majority of the Malaysian Bar members," Abu Backer claims.

The government, Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Mohamed Nazri Abdul Aziz ( right ) derclared last Saturday, is in agreement with the demand by a group of lawyers to form a new organisation to represent their profession, welfare and legal interests.

"If there is another association and agency formed to represent them, the Bar Council will only represent those who practise law and are registered with the council only.

"But there are those who are qualified in law, such as lecturers, who need not become a member of the council. They are not practising lawyers and need not be a member of the council," Nazri said.