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In the lawmaking process, Bills should NEVER be hastily rushed throughParliament. Draft Bills should be first circulated among lawmakers, civilsociety, stakeholders and interested parties and should be properly andthoroughly researched and studied by all parties concerned. Feedbacks onimprovements to the draft Bill must be considered and amended, if

necessary before being tabled in Parliament.

Show us the draft to replace the EO first, says GobindJuly 5, Malaysiakini

Show us the draft to replace the Emergency Ordinance if you want ourfeedback, said Puchong MP Gobind Singh Deo.

Gobind said Home Minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi should also give an assurance that

the new laws do not have provisions of detention without trial.

If the minister welcomes ideas and suggestions, show the opposition the draft andensure there will be no such provisions of detention without trial.

Whilst we are open to suggestions for reform and ideas to improve our criminal

justice system, we in the DAP must make it clear from the very outset that we willnot support nor participate in any discussion involving laws which provide for

detention without trial, he said.

In 2011, Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak had announced the repeal of the EO

which provides for detention without trial. As a result, thousands detained at thevarious detention camp have been released.

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Critics, including the Performance Management and Delivery Unit (Pemandu) underthe Prime Ministers Department, claimed the move had resulted in a rise in crime

cases, resulting in proposals to introduce new legislation.

Yesterday, Ahmad Zahidi was reported to have said the first draft of a new set oflaws to replace the EO was with the Attorney Generals Chambers and the minister

welcomed new ideas and suggestions from the opposition and non-governmentorganisations to make it effective.

Inspector-general of police Khalid Abu Bakar also welcomed the move, saying the

new legislation should be looked at seriously.

Gobind, who is DAPs national legal bureau chairperson, emphasised that detentionwithout trial is open to serious abuse and goes against basic human rights.

Everyone has the right to be heard as it is protected and guaranteed in our federal

constitution.

We are of the view that there is no need for a new set of laws to replace

theordinance as existing laws are sufficient to deal with the situation.

He urged that a complete study be done on how improvements can be made at all

levels, including better enforcement of current laws in order to meet the pressingproblem of crime in the country.

Yesterday, Gobind claimed the EOs removal two years ago was hastily done.

New laws to replace the Emergency

OrdinanceBY MUZLIZA MUSTAFA

JULY 04, 2013

The first draft of a new set of laws to replace the Emergency Ordinance (EO) is now at the

Attorney-General's Chambers.

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Home Minister Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi (pic) said the government decided on the

new laws following the spike in crime after the abolishment of the EO and the Restricted

Residence Act.

"We welcome new ideas and suggestions from everyone, including opposition leaders and

non-governmental organisations to ensure the new laws are effective," he said.

"They can channel their suggestions to me. If they don't send in their suggestions, they

should not complain when the law is introduced," he said.

Ahmad Zahid said the Home Ministry will also set up a task force to track down drug lords

and pushers who were freed after the EO was repealed.

"We found that many of them went back to their old ways after the preventive laws were

repealed and they were released from detention."

The Malaysian Insider recently spoke to several senior police officers who alleged that the

repeal of the preventive laws saw more than 2,500 detainees released back into society.

Police also claimed that the former detainees were now back to their old ways while police

had one hand tied behind their backs.

Ahmad Zahids announcement of the new laws comes after Minister in the Prime Ministers

Department Nancy Shukri told parliament on Monday that the government is prepared to

enact new laws to replace the EO to deal with escalating crime.

DAP Puchong MP Gobind Singh Deo today faulted the government for the spike in crime.

The government should accept and concede that it's earlier decision to repeal the laws was

hastily made, without proper study nor due regard for the consequences which would follow.

"I have raised this before. I have asked the government to explain what it planned to do

given the fact that the repeal of the EO would result in the release of hundreds if not

thousands of persons said to be hardened criminals, back into society, he said in a

statement.

Gobind said Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak was just interested in the governments

image when the decision was taken to repeal the preventive laws.

He said Najib should not hide behind complaints by the police to convince Malaysians that

preventive laws are necessary to justify bringing back the EO.

He should acknowledge that the problem isn't the result of the repeal of the EO alone but a

combination of many factors and the failure of the government to find solutions to all these

problems.

"Bringing back the EO would be wrong as Parliament moved to repeal it because it involved

detention without trial which led to serious abuse over the years.

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"What is now required is a complete overhaul of the laws which relate to police powers and

detention. The government should now go back to the drawing board and come up with a

holistic plan to solve this problem at all levels," Gobind added. - July 4, 2013.

Fear and loathing greets new law toreplace Emergency Act

BY JENNIFER GOMEZ, MUZLIZA MUSTAFA, ELIZABETH ZACHARIAHJULY 05, 2013

The new law to replace the former Emergency Ordinance Act (EO) that allowed criminals to

be held for years without trial has drawn flak from different quarters even before its critics

have been told what is in it.

The Bar Council was fearful it would reincarnate the old discredited law. Senior oppositionleader R Sivarasa declared it irrelevant. Human rights group Suaram just called it a ploy.

Christopher Leong, chairman of the Bar Council, is opposed to the return of the EO

dressed under a new name.

"The Bar has not seen and does not know what the proposed new law looks like or contains.

And we certainly do not favour what would be the effective recasting of the EO.

"It is not acceptable because it is easily open to abuse," he said, pointing out that the

government has recognised this and repealed the old act in Parliament.

He was commenting on a report that the first draft of a new set of laws to replace the EO is

currently with the Attorney-General's Chambers.

Home Minister Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi had said the government decided on the

new laws following the spike in crime after the abolishment of the EO and the Restricted

Residence Act.

Leong said the authorities have not shown any tangible data or evidence connecting the

spike in street crimes to the repeal of the EO.

"Measures to address street crimes include upgrading the capacity and abilities of police

personnel. It is not about equipping them with power to detain without trial," he stressed.

However, Leong said the Bar recognised that there may be grounds to consider new

legislation to deal with syndicated crime.

"We are open to the idea of new legislation to deal with syndicated crime but it should not be

the EO dressed up under a different name. We are open to discussing this with the AG's

chambers," he said.

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"Semua orang adalah sama di sisi undang-undang dan berhak mendapat perlindungan

samarata di sisi undang-undang," kata Hasmy dalam satu kenyataan media hari ini.

The Malaysian Insider baru-baru ini melaporkan pendedahan kenyataan seorang pegawai

tertinggi dalam pasukan polis mengatakan tugasan untuk memerangi jenayah terganggu

kerana undang-undang pencegahan telah dimansuhkan.

Susulan laporan tersebut, pemimpin Pakatan Rakyat (PR) membidas pasukan polis dan

menggesa mereka daripada berhenti memberi alasan pemansuhan Akta Darurat pada 2011

sebagai punca peningkatan jenayah di dalam negara tetapi sebaliknya menyifatkan punca

sebenar adalah salah guna sumber pihak berkuasa.

Menurut Hasmy lagi, langkah Perdana Menteri Datuk Seri Najib Razak pada tahun 2011

tersebut wajar dihormati sekiranya mahu demokrasi di dalam negara berfungsi sepenuhnya

serta selari dengan matlamat negara yang mahu mencapai taraf negara maju menjelang

2020.

"Kerajaan atas inisiatif Perdana Menteri berkenaan penggubalan undang-undang selaras

dengan keperluan masyarakat kontemporari merupakan satu kemenangan bagi pejuang-

pejuang hak asasi manusia yang mana kita semua adalah atau seharusnya menjadi

seperti itu sebagai rakyat kepada sebuah negara yang berhasrat mencapai demokrasi yang

berfungsi sepenuhnya.

"Oleh itu, kita haruslah menyokong keputusan berkenaan ke arah mencapai taraf negara-

negara maju," terangnya lagi.

Hasmy juga berkata kadar jenayah boleh diperangi oleh undang-undang sedia ada dimana

suspek penjenayah boleh didakwa menerusi proses yang sah, disamping pasukan polis

dipulihkan dengan beberapa penambahbaikan.

"SUHAKAM berpandangan bahawa dakwaan kesalahan jenayah boleh ditangani oleh

undang-undang keseksaan termasuk Kanun Keseksaan yang membenarkan suspek

penjenayah didakwa menerusi pembicaraan awam yang adil di mahkamah.

"SUHAKAM juga berpandangan bahawa pihak berkuasa perlu meningkatkan keberkesanan

mekanisme siasatan, pencegahan dan pemantauan jenayah, serta program pemulihan

untuk bekas tahanan," kata beliau lagi.

Putrajaya telah mengatakan dari 2009 hingga 2012, kadar jenayah kebangsaan menurunsebanyak 27 peratus sementara jenayah jalanan menurun sebanyak 39.7 peratus.

Polis mengatakan kadar jenayah juga jatuh enam peratus untuk suku tahun pertama 2013

berbanding tempoh yang sama tahun lepas tetapi beberapa kumpulan mempertikaikan

angka tersebut, mengatakan ianya telah diubah.

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This begs the question: If MPs are not being enabled and entrusted in the fullest sense of

the word to make the laws in Malaysia, who is? And what will it take for elected

lawmakers to reclaim their rightful role?

Who makes law?

Currently, the Attorney Generals Chambers and relevant ministries draft most of the

bills presented in Parliament. And according to some MPs, once these bills are presented

to Parliament, they are hardly amended, no matter how lively the parliamentary debate onit may be.

MPs are always referred to as lawmakers, said Kota Raja MP Siti Mariah Mahmud

from PAS. But we are only debating and passing or voting against laws drafted by the

government We are never involved in drafting the laws or enactments unlike otherparliaments. After all the debates, not a comma or a full stop will change.

The DAPs Tony Pua, who is also Petaling Jaya Utara MP, echoed this, sayingParliament had become a rubber stamp for the executive. He pointed out that even

Barisan Nasional (BN) MPs were hampered by the system. Even when they raised goodquestions about a bills provisions, it did not necessarily result in any amendments.

So what needs to be done to give MPs more say in the lawmaking process? After all,

whats the point of having them sit in Parliament if they dont significantly influence the

drafting or amendment of legislation? Whats the purpose of MPs being the peoplesrepresentatives when in reality, the executive has all the say?

Lawyer Andrew Khoo, convener of Civil Society Initiatives for Parliamentary Reform,

says MPs should have a much larger role in lawmaking than they currently do. At themoment, Parliament appears to be a debating chamber to score political points, andgenerally doesnt really change the course of legislation, he tells The Nut Graph in a

phone interview.

Process of lawmaking

Every bill passes through several stages before it can be approved. It goes through a firstreading, when it is formally read out to Parliament. It is then tabled for second reading,

when the bill is debated. It then goes through a committee stage, which should scrutinise

the bill and propose any necessary amendments. After it passes the committee stage, the

final version of the bill is debated and put to a vote after the third reading.

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Andrew Khoo (Pic courtesy of Andrew Khoo)

Khoo, however, says the committee review is highly ineffective in Malaysia because

Parliament is sorely lacking in setting up select committees to go through bills in detail.

In fact, many times, Parliament tends to have a committee of the whole House and rushesbills through.

Its possible to have the first and second reading on one day, and then go to thecommittee stage on the second day, with the third reading done at the end of that day. So

legislation can be passed in just two days, Khoo says.

Because bills are rushed through, there is little time for consultation. But having proper

select committees would change that. These committees would theoretically be able to

consult various parties, including those most affected by the bill, and independent

experts. It would also allow MPs time to present the bill to their constituents to allowthem to voice their feedback.

Insufficient resources

Even if lawmaking was made more democratic with the setting up of proper select

committees, would MPs have enough resources to scrutinise bills in greater detail?Respondents to theMP Watchproject painted a rather woeful picture when asked

whether Parliament provided enough resources for them to perform their roles.

Many MPs seemed a rather harried lot, having to balance between reading stacks of

material to participate in parliamentary debate and servicing large constituencies. Some,such as Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) MP Johari Abdul (Sungai Petani), said they had no

space to work in Parliament. Umno MP DatukAbdul Rahman Dahlan(Kota Belud)

echoed this, saying it was important for MPs to have offices where they could do their

work, have meetings and meet people.

Umno MP Idris Haron (Tangga Batu) said perhaps MPs could have office cubicles and

one permanent assistant. Rembau MP and Umno Youth chiefKhairy Jamaluddin

(Rembau) said Parliament needed a good resource centre with a comprehensivecollection of magazines, journals and books, along with access to online research portals.

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Additionally, opposition MPs generally feel they are financially disadvantaged because

they do not have access to the RM1 million-per-constituencyfund from the Prime

Ministers special fund. The RM1 million allocation is meant for all MPs, but anecdotallyhas only been disbursed to BN MPs. Many, like Mohd Yusmadi Mohd Yusoff(Balik

Pulau), said this allocation was clearly just for BN MPs as he had not received a single

sen.

Shouldnt there be equal funding for all political parties?

Opposition MPs also dont have access to civil service support. When a law is proposed,

BN MPs get briefed on the legislation by civil servants, says Khoo. But civil servantsarent allowed to brief opposition MPs. So opposition MPs have to go around asking non-governmental organisations or the Bar Council to brief them so they can understand the

proposed legislation and give intelligent input during debates.

The inequality of resources between government and opposition MPs is a cause for

concern. Opposition MPs, after all, also represent a significant proportion of Malaysians.In fact, researchers say that inpeninsular Malaysia, the BN narrowly lost the popular

vote. Opposition MPs should therefore have equal resources and better access to the

lawmaking process than is currently the case.

Some BN MPs also support better resources for all, including for the opposition. MPs,regardless of party, should be allocated research assistants and a proper office in

Parliament or somewhere near, said Umno MP Saifuddin Abdullah (Temerloh). This is

the practice of many advanced democracies. This is so that the MP can really play alawmakers role, he added.

The MCAs Teng Boon Soon (Tebrau) concurs on providing equal resources to

opposition MPs. If we only provide allowance for ruling party MPs, what about the

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interests of the people who disagree with the ruling party? They have the same rights and

they deserve protection equally, he said.

Far to go

Malaysian MPs seem woefully lacking in resources to conduct good research, unlessbacked up by party or government resources. Structures such as select committees that

allow for greater scrutiny and public consultation are not in place. There is an imbalance

in resources between opposition and government MPs. Like Thursdays child in thenursery rhyme, it looks like the Malaysian Parliament has far to go towards playing a

more effective and significant part in the lawmaking process.

This essay first appeared exclusively in Understanding the Dewan Rakyat, together with

other analyses on how our government works. The book also contains the profiles of thecurrent 222 MPs and how they and their parties would vote on key issues of democracy.

The book is available atPusatLoyarBurok.

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