Media Statement –
14/2/2019
Delay in abolition of
Death Penalty delays the bringing to justice all those involved in murder of Altantuya
Shaariibuu
Table Bills To Abolish Death Penalty in Parliament Session Starting 11th
March
MADPET(Malaysians Against Death
Penalty and Torture) is saddened by the delay in the abolition of the death
penalty, which would also most likely delay justice in the case of Altantuya
Shaariibuu, the Mongolian mother of two. She was murdered and her body was
blown up in a forest with explosives in 2006.
Sirul Azhar Umar and Azilah Hadri,
who were then serving as Najib’s personal security detail at the time of the
murder, were arrested and convicted for the murder by the High Court. In 2013,
the Court of Appeal overturned the convictions and both were released.
Thereafter, the Federal Court in January 2015, allowed the appeal by the
prosecution, and the murder conviction and death sentence was restored. Murder
carries the mandatory death penalty.
A co-accused, former political
analyst Abdul Razak Baginda, a confidant of then deputy prime minister Najib
Razak, was acquitted in 2008 without his defence being called to the charge of
abetting Azilah and Sirul. The
prosecution did not appeal the acquittal.
Najib, at the time of the murder
was the Deputy Prime Minister, and in March 2009 he became the Prime Minister
until the last General Election in May 2018, that saw the defeat of the
UMNO-Barisan National, and formation of a new alternative Pakatan Harapan
government.
Sirul Azhar, after his release by
the Court of Appeal left for Australia, and he did not turn up for the Federal
Court hearing, that again sentenced him to death. Since 2015, he has been
detained at the Immigration and Border Protection Department’s facility in
Sydney.
In 2015, Sirul was reported
saying, ‘"I was under orders. The important people with motive (to commit
murder) are still free," Sirul Azhar Umar said in a phone interview
published on Wednesday by Malaysian news website Malaysiakini.’(Straits Times,
18/2/2015).
This raised serious doubts that
the person/s who ordered the killing of Altantuya or paid for it may still be
at large. Australia, which is an abolitionist state, would not send Sirul back
to Malaysia, knowing that he may be hanged if he is send back to Malaysia.
It is now good that the current
Malaysian cabinet has decided to abolish the death penalty, and all that needs
to be done is the passing of Bills in Parliament that will abolish the death
penalty, and hopefully also result in the death sentence of all on death row to
be commuted. This would enable Sirul to be brought back to Malaysia, and his
evidence which may be vital for the successful prosecution of any other
remaining perpetrators will finally happen.
In the recent United Nations
General Assembly Resolution calling for the moratorium of executions pending the
abolition of the death penalty, Malaysia, consistent with the new government’s
declared position for the very first time voted in favour of the resolution.
The Altantuya case has also made
us aware that there may be many others who have ordered or paid for some other
to commit murder may still be out there free, and as such justice is not yet
fully achieved. All these other persons who ordered or paid for such murders should
also be identified, prosecuted, convicted and sentence.
In any criminal trial, it is of
no use for a person who was involved in the commission of the crime to confess
or plead guilty. Most will exercise their right to silence until all appeals
are exhausted. These persons may also be subject to threats against themselves
and their family members by them that ordered or paid them to kill. Those that
admit they killed because they were paid to kill is still guilty of murder – so
there is little reason to speak up and identify other accomplices who yet to be
identified and/or prosecuted
When the death penalty is
abolished, and better still any mandatory life prison sentence, the courts will
then have the ability to impose a lower prison term for any or all who
cooperated in making sure all others involved are also identified and
prosecuted. This would be another mitigating factor that the courts can
consider, but always ensuring that a just sentence is imposed.
The abolition of the death
penalty is needed to prevent the ‘innocent’ from being wrongly killed, as there
is always the risk of miscarriage of justice, which could be due to lawyers,
prosecutors, police, judges, court procedures and many other factors.
It has been shown in Malaysia,
that the death penalty, even if mandatory, does not deter crime.
Further, it is against religious
values, even Islam, as death Malaysia is not provided for in Islamic Laws but
civil laws, and the trial does not comply with Islamic evidential and
procedural requirements. Note, that in Islam, even for murder, execution is a
possibility as there is ‘diyat’(diya), where compensation and forgiveness from
victim’s family can save a murderer from death – this highlights that
repentance and/or forgiveness from victims is important, not simply punishment
if you do a crime.
In Malaysia, for a long time, the
lack of political will and strength on the part of government, despite the
global trend towards abolition may have kept the death penalty in our law
books. The fear of government to do the right and just thing simply because of a
fear of a possible loss of political support is pathetic. Hopefully, this new
Pakatan Harapan, unlike its predecessor, will not weaken and backtrack on its decision
to abolish the death penalty.
Many expected that the relevant
Bills leading to the abolition of the death penalty would have been tabled at
the last Parliamentary session in 2018, and the hope now is that it will be tabled
in the upcoming Parliamentary session starting on 11 March 2019.
It is sad that some have been
calling for the retention of the death penalty, which may simply be those who
are unaware of the just reasons for abolition. They may simply be opposing
because this was the decision of the current government, and as such be merely
a political strategy rather than one based on justice or values. They may also
be people who fail to also appreciate the sufferings of the children and
families, simply because a parent or sibling is executed. They fail to
appreciate that even the mandatory death penalty has failed to reduce murder or
drug trafficking in Malaysia.
Therefore, MADPET
-
Call of Malaysia to ensure that all those, if
any, who ordered or paid for the murder of Altantuya Shaariibuu are identified
and prosecuted. The abolition of the death penalty will also make it less likely
for accomplices including those who ordered or paid others to do the crime to
escape justice, as the those caught and/or convicted will more likely help make
this happen, if their assistance can affect/reduce sentences;
-
Calls for the Malaysian Government to
immediately, preferably during this upcoming Parliamentary session beginning in
March 2019, to bravely table the relevant Bills that will see the abolition of
the Death Penalty; and
-
Calls for the Malaysian government to
immediately commute the death sentences of all those on death row, which was
about 1,267 in July 2018.
Charles Hector
For and on behalf of MADPET
No comments:
Post a Comment