JULY 22 — The government plans to amend the Legal Profession Act (LPA) 1976, the law governing Malaysian lawyers, and proposes to have two government representatives sit on the Bar Council.

Malaysian Bar president Steven Thiru told me in an interview that Putrajaya is also proposing that the two representatives report to the government, even though Bar Council meetings are required by law to be confidential.

The Malaysian public generally doesn’t seem too fussed about the proposed LPA amendments, maybe because they think that it doesn’t affect them.

Drastic changes to a law governing the legal profession may not directly affect the ordinary citizen’s day-to-day living, but Malaysian democracy will take another step backwards when one of the last few remaining independent institutions in the country falls under the control of the government.

The Malaysian Bar has always spoken out on human rights abuses and issues involving fundamental liberties. They even organised a street protest in 2014 to call for the repeal of the Sedition Act 1948.

Detractors of the Bar Council have long accused the executive body of the Malaysian Bar of being pro-opposition.

Labels like "pro-government” and "pro-opposition” are thrown around way too easily in Malaysia. This kind of partisan thinking, which is practised on both sides of the fence, prevents Malaysia from progressing as a nation.

We can’t act as if a single political coalition — in this case, Barisan Nasional (BN) — will necessarily be in power forever and accuse people of being only on one side. There are both good and bad politicians in BN and Pakatan Harapan.

It’s only logical that criticisms of unjust laws and policies be targeted against the government of the day because it is the federal government, in a country where the administration is heavily centralised, that makes these policies and legislation.

Current critics of the Bar Council who support the proposed LPA amendments ought to realise that should BN ever lose power, almost all of the country’s institutions would be under the control of the next government. How then can the political party they back have the necessary tools to ensure a check and balance?

We need to create and protect a vibrant democracy, not kill it just because it’s not in our favour at the moment.

As it is, the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) and the Attorney-General’s Chambers appear unable to perform their duties without fear of reprisal from those in power. The police and the judiciary sometimes face allegations of double standards.

The media is muzzled by various laws like the Sedition Act, the Printing Presses and Publications Act 1984, the Communications and Multimedia Act 1998, and the Official Secrets Act 1972.

What institutions are there left to safeguard the rule of law in Malaysia?

Even though various protests by the Malaysian Bar and other organisations have failed to ensure the abolition of oppressive laws, we can’t give up and allow yet another institution to fall.

At a recent regional journalism workshop that I attended, a Filipino journalist questioned how Malaysian journalists can fight for press freedom when repression is "in the system.”

All I can say is that we Malaysians must dare to dream of a greater nation even when it seems impossible. We can’t underestimate the power of the people.

More importantly, we can’t just leave it to a few people or groups to fight for our rights. We must stand together with them and speak out when they’re under attack.

Otherwise, we deserve the country that we have.

* This is the personal opinion of the columnist.