KUALA LUMPUR, April 12 — Human rights experts in the United Nations (UN) have praised Malaysia's decision to revoke the mandatory death penalty in the Dewan Rakyat recently, saying it has bolstered the global trend towards universal abolition.
In a statement, the experts said the death penalty usually targets ethnic minority groups and in some cases persons with disabilities who suffer from severe deterioration of their mental health due to prolonged periods of imprisonment.
“The death penalty is incompatible with fundamental tenets of human rights and dignity. We reiterate that the mandatory use of the death penalty constitutes an arbitrary deprivation of life and is a fundamental infringement upon the independence of judiciary and fair trial guarantees,” they said in the statement.
“It denies judges the possibility to consider the defendant’s personal circumstances or the circumstances of the particular offence and individualise the sentence. The mandatory death penalty is not compatible with the limitation of capital punishment to the 'most serious crimes.'"
They also said that the decision sends a strong signal supporting the abolition of the death penalty in a region where capital punishment is too often imposed for a broad range of crimes, and hoped that this would pave the way for the complete abolition in Malaysia and eventually the region.
"The majority of these offences do not meet the threshold of the most serious crimes, meaning those of extreme gravity involving intentional killing, which remains the only category of offence for which the death penalty can be imposed under international law,” they said.
The experts include: Morris Tidball-Binz, Special Rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions; Tlaleng Mofokeng, Special Rapporteur on the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health; Priya Gopalan, Matthew Gillett , Ganna Yudkivska, Miriam Estrada-Castillo and Mumba Malila from the Working Group on arbitrary detention; Fionnuala Ní Aoláin, Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of human rights and fundamental freedoms while countering terrorism; Gerard Quinn, Special Rapporteur on the rights of persons with disabilities; and Fernand de Varennes, Special Rapporteur on Minority issues.
The experts are part of Special Procedures, who are independent experts in the UN Human Rights system who work voluntarily without wage and serve in their individual capacities.
In a separate statement, watchdog Human Rights Watch (HRW) said the abolition was an important step toward aligning with international human rights norms and growing global opposition to capital punishment.
Human Rights Watch Asia director Elaine Pearson also urged Malaysian lawmakers to build on this momentum by taking further steps toward the total abolition of the punishment.
“The abolition of the mandatory death penalty brings Malaysia closer to the majority of countries that have eliminated capital punishment altogether,” said Pearson.
“Malaysia’s next step should be ending its use of the punishment entirely and commuting the sentences of the 1,300 prisoners sitting on death row.”
Last week, the Parliament passed a Bill that proposed to make the death penalty an option and no longer mandatory. It was passed via a voice vote after it was tabled for its third reading, and would now need to be approved in the Dewan Negara as well before being presented to the Yang di-Pertuan Agong for royal assent.
The Abolition of Mandatory Death Penalty Bill would give judges the discretion on the death penalty rather than requiring them to do so when convicting on offences that made them mandatory.
The amendments in the Bill also include replacing life and natural life imprisonment (until death) as an alternative to the mandatory death sentence, with the new alternative of jail of between 30 and 40 years as well as no fewer than 12 strokes of the cane.
