SUHAKAM, the Human Rights Commission of Malaysia, welcomes the proposal to abolish the mandatory death penalty for drug offenders in Malaysia. The proposal was made my Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Datuk Seri Mohamed Nazri Abdul Aziz.
Abolishing the death sentence for drug offenders is in line with the United Nations (UN) resolution, which calls for a suspension on executions; with a view to eventually abolish the death penalty.
SUHAKAM Chairman Tan Sri Hasmy Agam informed Bernama.com in a statement, that the proposal was also in line with the spirit of Article 3 and Article 6 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) and the International Convenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) respectively that reaffirm the right of a person to life and the right not to be subject to torture, or cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment.
The Chairman also said that SUHAKAM had called for the government to consider suspension on the death penalty or converting this form of punishment to life imprisonment, especially for those who have been on the death row for more than five years.
Furthermore, he said that SUHAKAM wants the government to review the relevance and effectiveness of capital punishment, and has also called for the government to join the other 140 UN member states to completely abolish the death penalty.
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