Media Statement – 11/10/2018
MADPET welcomes Malaysian Cabinet
Decision to Abolish the Death Penalty
MADPET(Malaysians
Against Death Penalty and Torture) welcomes the announcement that the Malaysian
Cabinet has finally decided to abolish the death penalty, and that the needed
Bill will be tabled at the next Parliamentary session, now scheduled to begin
on 15/10/2018.
In
the evening of 10 October 2018, the 16th World Day Against the Death Penalty, it was reported in the media that ‘…The
Cabinet has decided to abolish the death penalty, and it will be tabled in the
next Parliament sitting, which will begin on October 15, said Datuk Liew
Vui Keong.The minister in charge of law in the Prime Minister’s Department said
while the government is studying certain cases, as of now, all executions have
been halted.“All death penalty will be abolished. Full stop….’(Malay Mail, 10/10/2018)
With
regard persons currently on death row ‘…the Pardons Board will be tasked with
looking into the applications of death row inmates. “Our view is that
executions should not be carried out we will inform the Pardons Board to look
into the various applications for all the death row inmates to either commute
or release them…’
(Malay Mail, 10/10/2018)
This
will certainly be good news for the spouses, children and relatives of the
about 1,267 people on death row or
2.7% of the prison population of about 60,000 people.(Star,
28/6/2018). Their parent and/or relative will no longer be hanged to death and will
live.
Whilst the announcement of the cabinet decision by
the Minister is most welcome, in Malaysia, one will have to wait until the
needed Bills are tabled in Parliament, become law and then put into force,
hopefully by the end of 2018. Malaysians have been subjected by similar
promises and/or assurances by Ministers in the past government, only to be later
disappointed.
As such, it is our hope that the said Bills that
will effectively abolish the death penalty will be tabled at the upcoming
Parliamentary session, at the very least for the First Reading, if there be no
time for it to be debated and passed.
MADPET hopes that Members of Parliament and
Senators from the Opposition parties will fully support the just move to
abolish the death penalty.
MADPET await the day when we can finally celebrate
the abolition of the death penalty in law, and there will be no more death row
in Malaysia.
Charles Hector
For and on behalf of MADPET
Note:-
·
Malay Mail, 10/10/2018 - Minister: Putrajaya to
abolish death penalty [https://www.malaymail.com/s/1681448/minister-putrajaya-to-abolish-death-penalty]
·
The Business Times, 10/10/2018 – Malaysia To
Abolish Death Penalty [https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/government-economy/malaysia-to-abolish-death-penalty]
Minister: Putrajaya to abolish death penalty
The minister in charge of law in the Prime Minister’s Department said while the government is studying certain cases, as of now, all executions have been halted.
“All death penalty will be abolished. Full stop.
“We are studying certain issues... we need to look into it and hear the views of all, but as it stands today, the decision is to abolish the death penalty,” he told the media after the “Law Reform Talk” at Universiti Malaya here, today.
Liew said that with Putrajaya intending to abolish the death penalty, the Pardons Board will be tasked with looking into the applications of death row inmates.
“Our view is that executions should not be carried out we will inform the Pardons Board to look into the various applications for all the death row inmates to either commute or release them.
“When commuted, they would have to face life imprisonment because there had been several deaths that were caused by the offender and so they were sentenced to death by the court,” he said.
Liew added that all the paperwork for the abolishment of the law is in its final stages, and that the Attorney General (AG) had given the green light for it to be tabled in Parliament.
“All the papers are in the final stage. The AG has also indicated to us that it is ready to be tabled, hopefully in this (Parliamentary) session,” he said.
Earlier in his opening speech, Liew said the Pakatan Harapan government is also mulling a repeal of the Sedition Act 1948 and other draconian laws. - Malay Mail, 10/10/2018
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