KUALA LUMPUR, May 22 — The recent debate over the introduction of hudud should not have even cropped up as the implementation of Syariah laws were never intended by the country’s founding fathers.
Bar Council president Christopher Leong said Malaysia was not formed on the basis that there would be a gradual introduction of two criminal justice systems.
“The implementation of hudud was never intended by our founding fathers and those who drafted our Constitution,” he said when met at the Public Forum on Rule of Law and Human Rights at the Bar Council yesterday.
“Tunku Abdul Rahman said no, Tun Abdul Razak said no, Tun Hussein Onn said no and even Tun Dr Mahathir said no. So this government should also say no to hudud,” said Leong.
The Constitution, he said, should be the supreme code of reference for decisions regarding laws in the country as it provides the framework within which all other laws are enacted.
On April 2, Kelantan Menteri Besar Datuk Ahmad Yakob announced PAS would be tabling a private member’s bill in Parliament to seek for the implementation of hudud in the state.
However, due to heavy criticism from both sides of the political divide, the party subsequently decided to postpone the tabling to an unspecified date, saying it needed more time to allow a state and federal technical committee to study how the Islamic penal code should be implemented.
On a separate matter, Leong also questioned the political independence of the Judicial Appointments Commission, saying the selection of judges was supposed to be made not just by a committee comprising of judges and former judges, but also academics and qualified civil servants.
Leong said if the composition of the commission was more complete, they would be able to select judges who are more capable of delivering good judgement.
“If only existing judges make up the commission, they might be afraid to make crucial decisions that would affect their position. As such, we hope the commission will take note of this matter and initiate reforms,” he said.
* Christopher Leong has disputed the contents of this article. A correction and Leong’s explanation can be found here.
