HRW: Malaysia has moved, from reform to repression

Leading international movement Human Rights Watch had condemned the Malaysian government for taking the country down the road to “repression” in 2013, especially after the May 5 general election.

“Malaysia in 2013 was marked by a ‘tale of two Najibs’ – promising legal reforms before the election and restoring repressive laws after it,”deputy Asia director at Human Rights Watch (HRW), Phil Robertson, said in a statement.

“Since May last year, the government has cracked down on basic rights, curtailed free speech, and charged activists for organising peaceful protests.”

Robertson was referring to Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak who has repealed repressive laws and promised human rights advancements prior to GE13.

He said the Malaysian government had responded to its electoral setback by “curtailing rights”.

“In the coming year, Malaysia’s leaders need to urgently reverse that trend, and recognise that promoting and protecting the rights of the people – including political opponents and outspoken activists – is their clear obligation.”

In its 667-page Human Rights Watch World 2014 report, HRW notes that Malaysia has reversed its earlier progress in human rights.

It says that Malaysia's membership in the United Nations Rights Council from 2010 to 2013 led to no improvement in its own record.

The country only ratified four international human rights conventions to date, making it among “the lowest in the region”.

Backsliding in legislation

It said 2013 saw Malaysia backsliding in human rights, particularly in new legislation.

In particular, HRW singled out the amendment to the Prevention of Crime Act in October, which allows preventive detention without trial and limited grounds of appeal.

The PCA, it said, restored some of the abusive elements of the abolished Internal Security Act and Emergency Ordinance.

Further, it said, the Malaysian government continued to bring “dubious” criminal charges against political opponents.

This included the appeal on the “politically motivated” sodomy charges against Opposition Leader Anwar Ibrahim and sedition charges against other leaders under an Act that the prime minister promised to repeal.

“At least 43 people await charges on violating notice provisions of the Peaceful Assembly Act connected with the opposition's Black505 post-election rallies, ensuring trials will continue through much of 2014,” HRW said.

It also listed out “hostile investigations and unsubstantiated accusations” by “government-controlled media” against human rights groups such as Suaram.

It listed several other human rights transgressions committed by the Malaysian government in 2013, including:

Resistance to the Independent Police Complaints and Reform Commission, despite 12 high-profile cases of deaths in police custody; and

Statements by government officers heightening public discrimination of the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community.

The HRW World Report 2014 is the 24th edition of the report, in which HRW annually reviews human rights practices in more than 90 countries.

Among the worst transgressions were those found in Syria, where there was widespread killing of civilians and US surveillance programmes, as revealed by whistleblower Edward Snowden.

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