KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 13 ― To fulfil public expectations in a democracy, the judiciary must be ready to have its actions judged in the court of public opinion, Lawyers for Liberty (LFL) executive director Eric Paulsen said today.

Paulsen, in a statement responding to a recent press conference by Chief Justice Tun Arifin Zakaria, said this is normal in any modern and democratic state, adding that for the judiciary to command public confidence and respect, it must conduct itself independently and with integrity.

“In today’s demand for greater transparency and accountability, the judiciary cannot escape close scrutiny of its conduct and judgments, as the public has high expectations of its role as the custodian of justice and the Federal Constitution,” the lawyer said.

“The judiciary must get used to this reality of being judged in the court of public opinion where controversial or high profile cases attract the most comments.

“This is the norm in other modern and democratic states and we do not see the judiciary in the United Kingdom, Australia or Canada expecting citizens to read judgments before commenting, as suggested by the Chief Justice,” he added.

Paulsen was referring to Arifin's recent comments at the 2016 Legal Year event last week where he reportedly said that judges can accept genuine criticism but not name-calling or remarks running down the judiciary.

According to the LFL leader, the chief justice also reportedly cited as an example Datuk Zaid Ibrahim's comments on the Court of Appeal's decision in M. Indira Gandhi's conversion-custody battle, and claimed that no one has ever been arrested or charged for criticising judgments.

Paulsen disagreed with this view and reminded Arifin that for criticising the Indira judgment, Zaid, a former law minister, is currently under investigation.

He also pointed out that several individuals were charged with sedition last year over comments they made regarding the Federal Court's decision in Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim's Sodomy II trial.

“While it is true no one has been cited for contempt of court for criticising the judiciary, it is however quite incredible for the Chief Justice to claim that no one has ever been arrested or charged for criticising the judiciary when numerous persons have been investigated, arrested or charged for comments relating to the judiciary,” Paulsen said.