The United Nations (UN) has no authority to force Malaysian courts to release former prime minister Najib Abdul Razak from serving his 12-year jail sentence, according to law experts.
Veteran lawyer Mohamed Haniff Khatri Abdulla told Malaysiakini that the international body abides by the policy of non-interference in the affairs of any sovereign states.
“Generally speaking, international bodies cannot interfere in the judicial affairs of any sovereign countries.
“The courts in Malaysia are still independent and are not bound by any decision, views or opinions of international bodies.
“Otherwise, international bodies themselves would violate the international concept of the freedom of sovereign nations,” Haniff said.
Yesterday, during a media briefing, Najib’s counsel Muhammad Shafee Abdullah revealed that they have filed a petition to the UN Human Rights Council Working Group on Arbitrary Detention (UNWGAD) over the former premier’s alleged arbitrary detention.
Back on Aug 23, the Federal Court in Putrajaya dismissed Najib’s appeal against his conviction over seven criminal charges as well as a 12-year jail term and RM210 million fine in the SRC case.
However, his review against the verdict is set for hearing before another apex court panel on Jan 19.
Speaking to Malaysiakini, veteran lawyer Joy W Appukuttan also concurred, saying that the way UNGWAD works is by providing its non-binding opinion and encouraging UN member states to follow.
“It appears that Najib’s complaint is his treatment of his defence team by the Federal Court, and he is already applying for a review of the matter (before the Federal Court in Putrajaya).
“He is already exercising his legal rights available in Malaysia. It would seem to be out of context to now seek the intervention of UNWGAD which is empowered with the task to investigate cases involving ‘deprivation of liberty’ when this review is pending,” Joy said.
During yesterday’s press conference over the UN petition, Shafee claimed that Najib’s legal team was not allowed enough time to prepare for the SRC appeal when the Federal Court denied the application to adjourn the appeal hearing.
Najib is currently serving his jail term at Kajang Prison.
Meanwhile, when contacted by Malaysiakini today, constitutional expert Nizam Bashir said that the former premier’s chances of success in the UN petition are slim.
“To my mind, the UN body would not be inclined to inquire into the petition as a final decision has been arrived at by our domestic courts in conformity with domestic law.
“Consequently, let’s not waste more ink or time on ‘what ifs’ where the UN body is concerned on this issue,” Nizam said, adding that Najib still has a remedy via the upcoming review before the Federal Court in Putrajaya.
Another long-time legal practitioner for over 30 years, Syed Iskandar Syed Jaafar, opined that the petition with the UN body is not likely to succeed as Najib has been granted enough opportunity to defend himself since he was first charged for the SRC case in 2018.
The counsel said that UNWGAD would not only peruse the petition by Najib but would also seek an official response from Malaysia’s Attorney-General’s Chambers regarding the former premier’s allegations.
According to the official website of the United Nations Human Rights Office of the High Commissioner, UNWGAD’s mandate is to investigate cases of deprivation of liberty imposed arbitrarily or that is inconsistent with the international standards set forth in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, or the international legal instruments accepted by the states concerned.
“The Working Group investigates alleged cases of arbitrary detention by sending urgent appeals and communications to the concerned governments to clarify and/or bring their attention to these cases.
“The Working Group also considers individual complaints under its regular communications procedure, leading to the adoption of opinions as to the arbitrariness of the detention. In addition, the Working Group conducts country visits to assess the situation of deprivation of liberty in the country,” the portal explained. - Mkini
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