Suhakam: Children's Commission must have greater powers

The Children's Commission Bill must empower the resulting commission to have greater powers such as unrestricted access to shelters and other child-related data, said the Human Rights Commission of Malaysia (Suhakam)

In a media statement today, Suhakam said the bill also needs to ensure the proposed Children's Commission is empowered with authority to advocate for policy changes, enforce the law and diligently monitor actions to safeguard children's rights.

Suhakam, in supporting the bill, said while the body has Office of the Children's Commissioner (OCC) under it since 2019, it is noted that the OCC is not sufficient to address the plethora of children's rights issues due to limited capacity and resources.

"Therefore, Suhakam supports the move for the establishment of an independent Children's Commission to serve as an up-scaled OCC with the following recommendations, (among them for) the commission to be allocated a sufficient budget and resources, expanded mandates and greater powers, which includes unrestricted access to shelters, detention centres as well as access to child-related data," Suhakam said.

The body said the bill needs to provide for the Children's Commission to have an appointment of full-time commissioners to ensure the commission can effectively fulfil its role and execute its mandate effectively.

"The commission must act as a bridge between the government and society as well as between adults and children, on child rights matters, with the aim of promoting children's active participation in society and ensuring that their voices are heard," Suhakam said.

Authority to advocate for policy changes

The body added that the bill also needs to empower the Children's Commission with the authority to advocate for policy changes across enforcement agencies and local authorities, as well as to demand meaningful remedies within the defined timeframes for children affected by such policies.

"It must allow the commission to be involved in the formulation of child-centric national policies, enhancing the quality of care delivered by government agencies while aligning these policies with the principles of good governance, thereby serving as a mechanism to continually assess the government's response to emerging issues affecting children.

"Embedding the notion of good governance within the framework of Madani will reshape governmental institutions, fostering a child-centric Malaysia," Suhakam said.

Back on March 16 during a press conference in her office at Parliament building, Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (Law and Institutional Reform) Azalina Othman Said announced that the government was drafting a special act to establish a fully independent Children’s Commissioner’s Office, which would act as a watchdog on various issues affecting children in Malaysia.

She said the office should be independent to effectively and aggressively oversee, not just the criminal laws regarding children, but also all aspects of their wellbeing such as education and health. - Mkini