A man of principle and an inspiration, family and friends remember Haris

 

Despite being diagnosed with lung cancer in April last year, Haris Ibrahim returned to legal practice two months later.

KUALA LUMPUR: Friends and family members paid tribute to Haris Ibrahim who died this afternoon, describing the lawyer-activist as a passionate and principled man as well as an inspiration.

David Soosay, Haris’s partner at his law firm, said the activist’s death was not just a big loss for the firm but also to the nation.

Soosay said Haris was a man of integrity who never compromised on his principles.

A passionate man, Haris loved to serve the people and had sacrificed “quite a bit”, Soosay said.

“He was a man of great stature,” he told FMT when met at the Bukit Kiara Muslim cemetery where Haris was laid to rest.

Adil Akbar hailed his uncle’s fighting spirit after Haris was diagnosed with lung cancer in April last year. Despite his illness, he returned to legal practice two months later.

“I was surprised he became involved in the campaigning during the last general election,” he said, adding that Haris had campaigned for Segambut MP Hannah Yeoh.

Like Soosay, Adil praised Haris’s unwavering principles. While Haris was a staunch Pakatan Harapan supporter, it never prevented him from disagreeing with some of the coalition’s policies when it came to power in 2018.

“But he knew nothing was perfect in this world. He had always been a man of principle.”

M Nandini said if she could describe his long-time friend in one word, it would be “integrity”.

She recalled Haris’s advice on never compromising on one’s principles as it was a slippery slope that would lead to corruption.

And one could not fight injustice, corruption and abuse of power if the person was “not clean”, Nandini remembered Haris telling her.

Nandini had met the founder of the “Asalkan Bukan Umno” (Anything but Umno) movement in the mid-2000s.

“Haris Ibrahim would always be someone who really served as an example to us all. He was an inspiration.

“He really walked the talk and lost a lot of money because he invested in his cause.” - FMT