| Home > South-East Asia >> Malaysia | |
Malaysia PM defends his judicial reforms
Associated Press - December 18, 2008
Vijay Joshi, Kuala Lumpur – Malaysia's prime minister has defended a new law aimed at promoting judicial independence even though it gives him the final say in appointing senior judges including the chief justice.
Malaysia's Parliament passed the Judicial Appointments Commission Bill late Wednesday, hours after Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi told The Associated Press in an interview that the legislation will rid the country's judiciary of its "negative perception."
The bill is a highlight of Abdullah's reforms program, which he is pushing through before handing over power to his deputy Najib Razak in March. This week Parliament also passed a bill to set up a new anti-corruption agency.
"Since I am retiring earlier than I was planning to do all these things have to be done very quickly," Abdullah said in the interview, adding that the drive against corruption and creating "a judiciary of integrity" were the cornerstones of his election campaign in 2004.
"If that can be fulfilled that's good enough. It doesn't matter whether you do it in a hurry or not," he said.
The reputation of Malaysia's judiciary has suffered from a series of scandals including a secretly taped video showing a lawyer allegedly brokering the appointment of senior judge in a telephone conversation with someone who was later appointed the chief justice.
At present the prime minister appoints the judges at his discretion without the need to justify his choice or consult others. The recent appointment of a former ruling party lawyer as the chief justice has also triggered opposition criticism about the independence of the judiciary.
The Judicial Appointments Commission calls for setting up a nine-member panel of judicial and nonjudicial persons who would recommend to the prime minister a set of names for the job of senior judges.
However, the prime minister has the prerogative to reject the recommendations and ask for fresh names until he picks one that he thinks is a suitable candidate.
Abdullah said the judicial commission will lend "more transparency" to the system, insisting that no prime minister would misuse his power. "I am sure the prime minister will not do anything that will ultimately put him in bad light. His reputation will be at stake," he said.
Opposition leaders say the country cannot rely solely on the prime minister's fear of sullying his reputation to have an independent judiciary. They say the prime minister should have no role at all in picking judges.
The new law "is totally unsatisfactory and unequal to the task to restore national and international confidence in the independence, impartiality and integrity of the Malaysian judiciary," Lim Kit Siang of the opposition Democratic Action Party said.
During the interview, Abdullah also said his final mission before retiring is to cool racial and religious tensions in this multiethnic country at a time of a deepening financial crisis.
Abdullah agreed to step down four years before the end of his term after facing a virtual rebellion from colleagues, shocked by the tremendous gains made by the opposition in March elections. The results robbed the ruling coalition of a two-thirds majority for the first time in four decades.
It was attributed to anger among minority ethnic Chinese and Indians who complain of discrimination in jobs, education and other areas by the majority Malays who dominate the government. They say their religious rights have also become secondary to Islam.
See also:
 |