Govt to set up special task force on institutional reform

A special task force will be set up to study and propose a list of institutional reforms, Minister in the Prime Minister's Department (Law and Institutional Reform) Azalina Othman Said announced today.

"We intend to establish a special task force on institutional reform soon, comprising relevant stakeholders with the purpose to conduct a cross-sectoral study and propose a list of institutional reforms which will be tabled in the cabinet.

"To broaden the engagement of this special task force as wide as possible, it will engage with civil society organisations (CSOs) and the public, to which they may submit their recommendations directly to us, via the task force," she said at the Human Rights Day forum in Kuala Lumpur today.

"We want the CSOs and the public to participate (in formulating institutional reform proposal).”

Azalina said the Anwar Ibrahim administration will continue the efforts pushed by the previous administration.

"We will also continue with the endeavours of the previous administration, to work on the abolishment of the mandatory death penalty, to be substituted with the appropriate alternative sentence.

"In the same vein, we would also like to propose to the cabinet to set up our very own Law Commission in Malaysia.

"A standalone Law Commission, independent of the Attorney-General's Chambers (AGC), will enable it to engage with a broad spectrum of talent, not just within the legal field, but also amongst sociologists, scientists, and the business community to propose reforms to the necessary laws," she added.

Speaking in a press conference later, Azalina said the setting up of the Law Commission will be subjected to the approval of the cabinet.

The minister said she would also raise the issue of citizenship for children born overseas to Malaysian mothers with foreign spouses at the cabinet.

"Yes, I will work on a cabinet paper on that.

"I have spoken to Home Minister Saifuddin Nasution Ismail and he is extremely sympathetic. We will continue this discussion and there must be steps taken by the Home Ministry in response to the issue, pending the law being amended," she said.

"We have to amend the Federal Constitution. We have to go to the cabinet to get the support so that we can look at the next (parliamentary) session.”

Under the Federal Constitution, only Malaysian fathers can pass their citizenship automatically to their children who are born overseas.

Malaysian mothers who are married to foreigners and give birth to their offspring outside Malaysia were not given the same right as the Federal Constitution omits the mention of mothers.

Queried on the issue of child marriage, Azalina said the issue comes under the jurisdiction of the Women, Family and Community Development Ministry.

"I cannot comment, I think you have to wait for the minister in charge, I rather not cross the jurisdiction unless I am asked to," she said.

Last December, then Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (Religious Affairs) Idris Ahmad said the government decided to maintain the minimum marriage age for Muslim girls at 16 after considering proposals to raise the limit to 18.

Efforts to raise the marriage age to 18 were initiated under the National Strategic Plan in Handling the Causes of Child Marriage in January 2020 by the then- Pakatan Harapan government.

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