KUALA LUMPUR: The Ministry of Home Affairs (KDN) clarified that Malaysia has not ratified the Convention Against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (UNCAT) because it would necessitate amendments to existing laws in the country.
Home Minister Datuk Seri Saifuddin Nasution Ismail said the convention required national laws not to include elements that caused ‘severe pain’.
“Our reason for not ratifying UNCAT is that certain sections explicitly state that our national laws cannot have elements that cause severe pain, while our laws include caning, and the Syariah Court also has caning.
“Caning is painful; if pain is not allowed, if we sign UNCAT, it means our existing acts need to be amended, and many other matters as well,“ he said during the winding-up session on the Malaysian Human Rights Commission (SUHAKAM) Annual Report and Financial Statement for 2021 and 2022 in the Dewan Rakyat today.
Saifuddin Nasution said neighboring countries like Singapore and Brunei had also not signed the convention.
Regarding negotiations on data sharing of refugees with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), Saifuddin Nasution said three rounds of negotiations had been held with UNHCR, and the process was still ongoing to harmonise several aspects.
He said one of the negotiation sessions was held in New York last September and the other two in Kuala Lumpur, while all the parameters of discussion on the data sharing cooperation had been conveyed to UNHCR, and in response, the global body wanted Malaysian officers to undergo training on human rights.
“On our side, we also see the need for modifications, an approach tailored to our local perspective. So, we are harmonising this matter,“ he said.
Meanwhile, Deputy Foreign Minister Datuk Mohamad Alamin said the government gave assurances that any decision to join or ratify international human rights instruments would not contradict the Federal Constitution or other applicable civil, Syariah, and customary laws in Malaysia.
“I wish to emphasise the importance and need for the government to take appropriate measures before ratifying any human rights treaty,“ he said while winding up the debate for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on the SUHAKAM Annual Report and Financial Statement.
SUHAKAM, in the report, urged the government to consider withdrawing reservations and ratifying the Optional Protocols contained in the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) and the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC).
The Dewan Rakyat sitting resumes tomorrow.
