'Now, the hard work begins', says Azalina as she sets sights on Law Commission, institutional reform task force

'Now, the hard work begins', says Azalina as she sets sights on Law Commission, institutional reform task force

KUALA LUMPUR: Proposals to the Cabinet to set up the Law Commission in Malaysia and the establishment of a Special Task Force on Institutional Reform are among the plans Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (Law and Institutional Reform) Datuk Seri Azalina Othman Said has in mind.

She said a stand-alone Law Commission, independent of the Attorney General's Chambers, will enable it to engage with a broad spectrum of talent not just within the legal field but also among sociologists, scientists, and the business community to propose reforms to the necessary laws for it to be fit for purpose and time.

Azalina said the Special Task Force on Institutional Reform will comprise relevant stakeholders with the purpose of conducting a cross-sectoral study and propose a list of institutional reforms to be tabled in the Cabinet.

"To broaden the engagement of this Special Task Force as wide as possible, it will engage with civil society organisations (CSO) and the public, to which they may submit their recommendations directly to us (the government) via the Task Force,” she said in her closing address at the Human Rights Day 2022 Forum here Monday (Dec 12).

Azalina said as the newly appointed Minister of Law and Institutional Reform, she was also the minister in charge of human rights, and was looking to strengthen the Malaysian Human Rights Commission (Suhakam) by amending the Suhakam Act 1999.

"This includes appointing people from as diverse backgrounds as possible, with the appropriate experience and knowledge on human rights into Suhakam. A further review will also be embarked upon on the present funding arrangement, to ensure Suhakam's independence can be preserved,” she said.

She said Suhakam ought to report on its findings to Parliament for the lawmakers to be acquainted with the state of affairs of human rights in Malaysia and to craft the next step forward.

According to Azalina, institutional reforms are embarked upon to ensure the nation is equipped with the "soft infrastructure" centred on human rights, for Malaysia to confront the incremental challenges anticipated from possible recession, and perhaps increasingly, volatile geopolitical tensions in the coming year.

"And now the hard work begins for the betterment of the nation and my fellow Malaysians,” she added. - Bernama