Activists take rights abuses to UN forum
Malaysia's human rights record will be put under the spotlight at a United Nations meeting this week.
A team of human rights activists from Malaysia, including human rights group Suaram director and former MP Dr Kua Kia Soong, and Khalid Jaafar, from the Institute of Policy Research, will hold a special forum on Malaysia in conjunction with the current session of the 56th United Nations Human Rights Commission in Geneva.
The UN meeting is an annual six-week event where governments gather to update one another on the human rights situation in their respective countries. In addition, resolutions are debated on censuring certain governments for violations of human rights and NGOs are allowed to made interventions during the meeting to inform delegates on specific abuses.
Comprising non-governmental organisations representatives, the Malaysians will also lobby the European Union to send a fact-finding mission to Malaysia to investigate the judicial practices in the past 18 months, especially centering on the Anwar Ibrahim court trials, related "reformasi" trials and the events that led up to Anwar's conviction on corruption charges for abuse of power while in office as the deputy prime minister.
The NGO team, besides reporting on the deteriorating human rights situation in Malaysia, will highlight the problems associated with the Malaysian judiciary, the diminishing freedoms of expression and assembly in the country.
"The team will take issue with the Malaysian government, who as eloquent spokesperson in defence of developing third world countries, has however, set "unreasonable" standards on political participation and civil liberties of its people," said Suaram coordinator S. Arutchelvan.
Malaysia's human rights record will be put under the spotlight at a United Nations meeting this week.
A team of human rights activists from Malaysia, including human rights group Suaram director and former MP Dr Kua Kia Soong, and Khalid Jaafar, from the Institute of Policy Research, will hold a special forum on Malaysia in conjunction with the current session of the 56th United Nations Human Rights Commission in Geneva.
The UN meeting is an annual six-week event where governments gather to update one another on the human rights situation in their respective countries. In addition, resolutions are debated on censuring certain governments for violations of human rights and NGOs are allowed to made interventions during the meeting to inform delegates on specific abuses.
Comprising non-governmental organisations representatives, the Malaysians will also lobby the European Union to send a fact-finding mission to Malaysia to investigate the judicial practices in the past 18 months, especially centering on the Anwar Ibrahim court trials, related "reformasi" trials and the events that led up to Anwar's conviction on corruption charges for abuse of power while in office as the deputy prime minister.
The NGO team, besides reporting on the deteriorating human rights situation in Malaysia, will highlight the problems associated with the Malaysian judiciary, the diminishing freedoms of expression and assembly in the country.
"The team will take issue with the Malaysian government, who as eloquent spokesperson in defence of developing third world countries, has however, set "unreasonable" standards on political participation and civil liberties of its people," said Suaram coordinator S. Arutchelvan.
Other delegation members are Nurul Izzah, daughter of former deputy Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim, Cynthia Gabriel, another Suaram director, Elizabeth Wong, secretary-general of the National Human Rights Society and Debby Stothard, of social reform group Aliran.
Arutchelvan said that the Malaysian team will also seek the implementation of the recommendations contained in a special report on Malaysia to the UN Human Rights Commission, presented last year by the Special Rapporteur on the Promotion and Protection of the Right to Freedom of Opinion and Expression.
Yesterday, the Foreign Ministry announced that former deputy prime minister Musa Hitam was appointed to head the newly established Malaysian Human Rights Commission. Musa had served a stint as chairperson of UN Human Rights Commission in Geneva.
