Call on the Malaysian Parliament to mark the 1998 Human Rights Year by ratifying the International Covenants on Civil and Political Rights and on Social, Economic and Cultural Rights

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Speech
- NS DAP "Free Guan Eng" Dinner
by Lim Kit Siang  

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However, the Malaysian government stands out in the world as one of those not enthusiastic in supporting the 1998 Human Rights Year to promote  greater human rights awareness and consciousness and this is why very few Malaysians know about 1998 as Human Rights Year or why  the government has done virtually nothing to live up to its international commitments to promote the cause of human rights.

This is the same sorry state of affairs with the Malaysian Parliament. In September last year, the Inter-Parliamentary Union adopted a special resolution on the 50th Anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and  called on all Parliaments and their members to take action at the national level to ensure:
 

• international and regional human rights treaties are ratified and reservations withdrawn;
• enabling legislation enacted, regulations harmonised with norms and standards contained in instruments;
• independent national institutions for human rights established in keeping with human rights norms;
• necessary resources for action to promote and protect human rights, especially  human rights education.

In the past two decades, the ratification of the international human rights instruments had continued to be the regular subject of DAP motions in Parliament but the Barisan Nasional government has refused to allow parliamentary time for debate.  In the current meeting of Parliament, for instance, DAP MP for Teluk Intan, M. Kula Segaran has a motion referring specifically to the ratification of the International Covenant of Civil and Political Rights and the International Covenant on Social, Economic and Cultural Rights.

Even if the government is lukewarm about the 1998 Human Rights Year, the Malaysian Parliament should ratify the two International Human Rights Covenants as Malaysia’s contribution to the 1998 Human Rights Year.

1998 is not a good year for human rights, democracy and the rule of law for Malaysia.  A quick reading of the 30 articles of Universal Declaration of Human Rights 1948 will highlight the recent grave violations of human rights in Malaysia which are serious departures from the  universal principles of human rights declared half a century ago,  such as:
 

• Article 5 - No one shall be subjected to torture or to cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment.
• Article 9 - No one shall be subjected to arbitrary arrest, detention or exile.
• Article 10 - Everyone is entitled in full equality to a fair and public hearing by an independent and impartial tribunal, in the  determination of his rights and obligations and of any criminal charge against him.
• Article 11(1) -  Everyone charged with a penal offence has the right to be presumed innocent until proved guilty according to law in a public trial at which he has had all the guarantees necessary for his defence.
• Article 12. - No one shall be subjected to arbitrary interference with his privacy, family, home or correspondence, nor to attacks  upon his honour and reputation. Everyone has the right to the protection of the law against such interference or attacks.
• Article 19 -  Everyone has the right to freedom of opinion and expression; this right includes freedom to hold opinions without  interference and to seek, receive and impart information and ideas through any media and regardless of frontiers.
• Article 20.-  (1) Everyone has the right to freedom of peaceful assembly and association.

Malaysia is undergoing a multitude of crisis - not only the worst economic and political crisis in the nation’s history, the crisis of confidence in the judiciary and the system of justice, but also the crisis of human rights and democracy as well.

There is a political ferment for change for justice, freedom, democracy and good governance, which predated the political crisis generated by Anwar Ibrahim’s sacking from government and UMNO.  Unfortunately, there are irresponsibe people who are trying to divert attention from the popular and legitimate demands for the restoration of human rights, democracy and the rule of law by claiming that the political crisis in the country today is “largely a Malay affair”.

Malaysians must defeat these irresponsible attempts to  distort the unprecedented political ferment in the country into an racial issue for the demands  for justice, freedom, democracy and good governance in Malaysia is not a racial   question but an issue which should concerns all Malaysians, regardless of race, religion or even party beliefs as it is an issue which concerns Malaysians as human beings.

(7/11/98)