The Yang di-Pertuan Agong and other Malay rulers will never be subjected to trial before the International Criminal Court (ICC) due to their positions as constitutional monarchs, Attorney-General Tommy Thomas said today.
Speaking at a forum to discuss Malaysia's move to withdraw its accession to the Rome Statute, Thomas said this was as the ICC has a clearly defined jurisdiction against four serious crimes of international concerns and targeting its direct perpetrators.
"So for example, if war is declared, although the Agong is the supreme commander of our armed forces, the decision to go to war will always be made by the prime minister, the Cabinet and the minister of defence.
"Operationally it will be the generals or admirals," he said.
"If Malaysia commits war crimes, the people who will be vulnerable to an ICC prosecution will be the prime minister, ministers, generals, but never the king because he is a constitutional monarch," added Thomas during the forum organised by a group of student activists at Universiti Malaya today.
Among others, he cited example of international calls for action against UK former president Tony Blair for the actions of British troops during the US-led 2003 invasion of Iraq, but not against Queen Elizabeth as their constitutional monarch.
Aside from war crimes, Article 5 of the Rome Statute limits the jurisdiction of the ICC to genocide, crimes against humanity and crimes of aggression committed during the time after a country had acceded to the Rome Statute.
[More to follow] - Mkini
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