Way forward for prison reforms
Permatang Pauh MP Nurul Izzah Anwar has expressed hope that the final weeks of Parliament sitting will see the government announcing the formation of a Working Committee on Prison Reforms under the Home Ministry.
Nurul Izzah - as a member of the All-Party Parliamentary Group Malaysia (APGM) Prison and Detention Centre Reforms - said the proposal has received stakeholders' support including from the Prisons Department.
"It would be a nice topping on the cake if the government...
Permatang Pauh MP Nurul Izzah Anwar has expressed hope that the final weeks of Parliament sitting will see the government announcing the formation of a Working Committee on Prison Reforms under the Home Ministry.
Nurul Izzah - as a member of the All-Party Parliamentary Group Malaysia (APGM) Prison and Detention Centre Reforms - said the proposal has received stakeholders' support including from the Prisons Department.
"It would be a nice topping on the cake if the government in this latest session of Parliament which ends in the next three weeks, could basically announce a working group on prison reforms.
"I think the Prison Department is fully in support. We need experts from the Prison Department, Suhakam, the Attorney-General's Chambers and even from the Health Ministry," said Nurul Izzah as a panellist at the Suhakam Regional Conference on Prison Reforms held in Kuala Lumpur.
"This is important because we want buy-in, and with this (working committee) we are really pushing politicking on the ground.
"We don't have much time to waste," she stressed.
Alternative sentences, improvement for prison staff
Among others, Nurul Izzah explained that the working committee would start work on important reforms including forming a Sentencing Council - a mechanism to propose alternative sentences for minor offences that carries a jail sentence.
"If we don't have that, you will automatically have magistrates who will be forced to mete out punitive punishments for those responsible for petty offences," she added.
Former Kluang MP Liew Chin Tong, who is also an APGM member, said that the proposed reforms would also address issues of prison officers welfare.
Reflecting on prison operations since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic, Liew said the periods of lockdown saw prison officers working under stressful conditions and so bipartisan support for proposed reforms could introduce better welfare and remuneration system.
"As far as parliamentary reforms are concerned, it is important to develop bipartisanship and more so to have buy-in from the stakeholders.
"I really hope that the home minister can see this is a very important issue moving forward," he added.
Put politics aside
Liew also noted partisan politics should not come into play when addressing issues of prison reforms.
"This is an area where under the new circumstances in our political structure, we don't have a strong party... but actually that's the best time to look into bipartisanship and work an issue that goes beyond politics.
"Prison health is public health and a better prison with less issues will be better for society," he added.
Special Advisor to the Prime Minister on Law and Human Rights Azalina Othman Said yesterday in her opening speech said the Covid-19 outbreaks in prisons infecting 51,123 inmates, staff and their families should be a trigger for inter-agency action on prison reforms.
Meanwhile, Prisons Department director-general Nordin Muhamad in his closing address today said any push for reforms would require support of policymakers, including addressing issues raised during the conference.
Nordin later told Malaysiakini the formation of the working committee is being considered by the government as an inter-agency platform towards implementing identified reforms.
"We believe this is being considered by the government for when our direction is clear.
"When the time comes for us to take on the prison reforms, we will certainly need the support of others," he said.
Other topics covered during the two-day conference held at a hotel and via Zoom include efforts to reduce overcrowding in prisons, as well as sharing of regional perspectives and best practices from countries including Indonesia, the Philippines and Myanmar.
