On March 6, Lawyers’ Rights Watch Canada through its Executive Director, Brian M. Samuels issued a letter to Prime Minister Dato’ Seri Najib Razak condemning the conviction of Karpal Singah under the Sedition Act 1948. Below are the summarized version of the letter:
On March 6, Lawyers’ Rights Watch Canada through its Executive Director, Brian M. Samuels issued a letter to Prime Minister Dato’ Seri Najib Razak condemning the conviction of Karpal Singah under the Sedition Act 1948. Below are the summarized version of the letter:
In 2009, Karpal Singh, prominent human rights lawyer, Member of Parliament and head of the Democratic Action Party, voiced his opinion that the summary removal of a minister (Menteri Besar) by the Sultan of Perak was ultra vires the Sultan’s authority and could be reviewed by a court.
For expressing that opinion, Mr. Singh was charged under section 4(1) (b) of the Sedition Act and was convicted on 21 February 2014 by the High Court in Kuala Lumpur with sentencing adjourned to 11 March. The Act provides for a maximum sentence of 3 years in jail and/or a fine of RM 5,000. A jail sentence of more than one year or a fine of more that RM 2,500 would disqualify Mr. Singh from continuing to be a Members of Parliament. The International Commission of Jurists condemned the conviction as contrary to international law and as a signal that lawyers in Malaysia are not free to express opinions on legal matters.
Karpal Singh is widely respected as a knowledgeable, articulate and effective lawyer, human rights advocate and Member of Parliament. Because of his advocacy, Karpal Singh has been targeted with removal from his profession in the past. In October 1987 Mr. Singh was jailed under International Security Act and held without charge until March 1988.
The prosecution and conviction of Karpal Singh for voicing his opinion about a legal matter of public concern violates Malaysia’s legal obligations arising from both domestic and international law to protect freedom of expression and participation in government that are fundamental to a democratic society and to the integrity of the Malaysian legal system. By voicing his opinion, Mr. Singh was exercising rights protected by the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) to: freedom of expression (art. 19); freedom to take part in government (art. 21); and his duty as a lawyer and a parliamentarian to impart information about issues of public interest.
By seeking to impose criminal punishment and professional restrictions on Mr. Singh for peacefully exercising his right as a citizen and his duty as a lawyer and a parliamentarian, Malaysia is contravening the international law obligations it has assumed as a member of the United Nations, of the Commonwealth and of ASEAN.
LRWC calls on the Court and other authorities involved to consider the above noted international law obligations and ensure that Karpal Singh is not deprived of his liberty, his licence to practice law or his qualification to be a Member of Parliament, as a result of these criminal proceedings.
Brian M. Samuels
Executive Director
Lawyers’ Rights Watch Canada
For Futher Information: www.lrwc.org