'Opposition MPs, senators must support govt plans to abolish death penalty' (NST-Yahoo News 11/10/2018)

'Opposition MPs, senators must support govt plans to abolish death penalty'

Luqman Arif Abdul Karim

New Straits Times11 October 2018

KUALA LUMPUR: The Malaysians Against Death Penalty and Torture (Madpet) has called on the opposition and BN-controlled Dewan Negara to support Putrajaya's plan to abolish the death penalty.

Madpet spokesman Charles Hector Fernandez said the cabinet decision to abolish the death penalty was good news for some 1,267 people facing death row.

“Madpet hopes the MPs and senators from the opposition parties will fully support the just move to abolish the death penalty,” he said in a statement.

Fernandez’s concerns stem from the fact that the majority of senators in Dewan Negara are not from Pakatan Harapan.

In fact, the abolition of the Anti-Fake News Act which was approved in Dewan Rakyat failed at senate level on Sept 12.
 

Dewan Negara president Tan Sri S.A. Vigneswaran announced that 28 members of the senate had voted against abolishing the act, compared to 21 for.

Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Datuk Liew Vui Keong had on Wednesday said the government would seek the abolition of the death penalty.

Following the Cabinet’s decision, he had said, a moratorium on carrying out the death sentence was put in place, pending necessary amendments to the relevant laws.

Fernandez said the announcement would be welcome news for the 1,267 inmates currently on death row as well as their families.

“These inmates make up 2.7 per cent of the 60,000 people in Malaysian prisons... their family members, their parents, can now breathe a sigh of relief.” © New Straits Times Press (M) Bhd - Yahoo News, 11/10/2018