I wrote this draft for a documentary project, as the result of two weeks of work I did for a project, but the filmmaker disappeared...
So let's at least share it with the world:
Human rights in Malaysia: Progress has been made, but the government has a lot to do to keep its promises
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By Melissa Chemam
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After a shift in power on 9 May 2018, the new Malaysian government had promised in to fight to encourage the freedom of the press and to protect women’s rights and human rights in general.
Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad came to office thanks to a campaign promising roll back restrictions on free speech. Malaysians voted in May to oust Prime Minister Najib Razak and his governing party for the first time in the country’s history. But the progress has been slow…
In their latest report, published on 6 May 2019, two NGOs working on press freedom have found out that “a year after the electoral victory of the Pakatan Harapan coalition, authorities have failed to reform repressive legislation or expand civic space, and continue to restrict fundamental freedoms and silence dissent.”
Despite some encouraging early steps by Malaysia’s new political leaders, broader reform processes to protect human rights have ground to a halt.
“In August 2018,” they wrote in a press release, “Malaysia’s lower house of Parliament passed a bill—later rejected by the Senate—to repeal the Anti-Fake News Act, a repressive law adopted by the previous government in the run-up to elections.” Authorities also took steps towards “ending criminal proceedings against human rights defenders, political activists and critics of the former regime.”
“The Pakatan Harapan government came to power on the back of promises to reform repressive laws and open up public spaces that have long been restricted by the previous regime. Instead, authorities have used the same old laws to silence critics, stifle unpopular opinions and control public discourse. These retrogressive tactics blemish the supposed reformist credentials of Malaysia’s new leaders, and impede the democratic transition that they promised to bring about,” said their researcher from their Malaysia Programme Officer.
They still welcome steps to establish a self-governing media council, and to end political oppression.
Among those benefiting from dropped charges or acquittals were:
-human rights lawyers,
-a socialist Party activist,
-a political cartoonist,
- a former Batu MP,
-a former Jelutong MP,
-and many political protesters.
One week after the election, former opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim was also released from prison.
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Blocking progress
However, the NGOs noted, “after one year in power, the Pakatan Harapan government has made little progress on many of the promises made in its manifesto, and has backtracked on other commitments made since taking power.”
Notably, the government reversed course on its decisions to ratify the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination (ICERD) and Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court after coming under pressure from conservative groups.
“The government has also failed to take concrete steps towards the ratification of other human rights treaties, including the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.”
NGOs reviewed the government’s record during its first year in office and revealed continued restrictions on the right to peaceful assembly. Those involved in peaceful protests, including students, women’s rights activists and indigenous activists have been arbitrarily detained, threatened or investigated, while the Peaceful Assembly Act has yet to be amended in line with international law and standards. Further, the government has failed to follow through on manifesto promises to create an enabling environment for civil society and to review laws and policies that restrict the registration and operations of NGOs.
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Women’s rights: more could be done for equality
Talking to a Women’s organisation, I also found out that some progress have been made in terms of policy regarding women’s rights, notably to get stalking criminalised. But women in Malaysia are still paid less and have less access to certain professions. It’s quite difficult socially for Muslim women to get out without a headscarf but in the hospitality business, managers often ask of them to work without any veil.
The rights of LGBTs and trans-women are in the contrary not protected at all.
On International Women’s Day for instance, in March 2019, activists who marched to support their rights were harassed, arrested or even condemned. And the Sedition Act was once again deployed to investigate the organizers of an International Women’s Day march that included participants from LGBTI groups.
In Malaysia in general, the conservative opposition has built up a backlash against LGBT people and to get rid of the international convention against discriminations.
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Other examples of human rights violation:
-In January 2019, three individuals were arrested and investigated for allegedly insulting the former King Sultan Muhammad V following his resignation.”
-Between January and April 2019, the authorities continued to use the Sedition Act against individuals who made comments on social media allegedly insulting the Malaysia royalty and for alleged racially inflammatory remarks.
-On 10 January 2019 the de facto Law Minister announced that the authorities were considering new legislation or legal amendments to provide stronger punishments for those insulting the Malaysian royalty.
-In general, progress also needs to be made for the rights of ethnic minorities.
-Investigating the deforestation of Sarawak, in Borneo, and the dispossession of its people, some journalistsfollowed a trail of corruption in 2018 that led her to the heart of Malaysian politics and to Prime Minister Najib Razak himself. There practices are still in place today.
