Hundreds of Malaysian lawyers march to Anwar’s office over judicial appointment controversy
The 2.6km walk, organised by the Malaysian Bar, began at the Palace of Justice in Putrajaya and concluded around 3pm on Jul 14 with the handover of a memorandum to the Prime Minister’s Office.
Hundreds of Malaysian lawyers marched to the Prime Minister's Office in the 'Walk to Safeguard to Judicial Independence' led by the Malaysian Bar. (Photo: Facebook/Malaysian Bar)
PUTRAJAYA: Hundreds of Malaysian lawyers marched to the office of Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim on Monday (Jul 14) and handed over a letter with four key demands.
These include the immediate appointment of top judges and a Royal Commission of Inquiry (RCI) into alleged political interference in the judiciary.
The lawyers, dressed in black suits and holding placards, chanted slogans before commencing their walk to the Prime Minister’s Office at about 2.30pm, according to local news outlet Free Malaysia Today.
The Malaysian Bar, which organised the ‘Walk to Safeguard Judicial Independence’, said the walk is “not political in nature”.
Rather, it is aimed at expressing grave institutional concerns about the state of the judiciary, prolonged vacancies, the need for leadership continuity, and to call for reforms to safeguard the judiciary’s independence.
The lawyers were joined in the march by politicians from both sides of the aisle - including Anwar’s daughter Nurul Izzah Anwar - as well as members of non-governmental groups, with the crowd estimated to be 1,000.
The Anwar government has been under pressure in recent weeks after two top judges retired without replacement, sparking claims of disagreement between his administration and the judiciary and allegations of political interference in such appointments.
Adding to the tension, a document allegedly containing excerpts from a Judicial Appointments Commission (JAC) meeting held in May went viral on social media over the weekend.
The JAC’s main function is to select suitably qualified persons for appointment as judges of the superior court. It is an exclusive panel of nine made up of judges as well as current and former members of the legal fraternity and its meetings are highly confidential.
POLITICIANS AMONG THOSE WHO JOIN MARCH
According to the New Straits Times, participants of Monday’s march were closely monitored by over 100 police officers, including personnel from the Criminal Investigation Department, with a police drone observed overhead.
The Malaysian Bar, which represents around 23,645 lawyers in Peninsular Malaysia, concluded its 2.6km march with the handing over of a memorandum at the Prime Minister’s office at about 3.20pm.
In its memorandum, the Malaysian Bar called for:
- Judicial leadership positions to be filled as soon as possible by “judges of integrity, strong character and unblemished reputation, with a proven record of clear, consistent and quality judgements and who are respected by peers and the public”.
- The “immediate release” of meeting minutes of a JAC meeting held on May 16 and urgent inquiries into alleged interference in judicial affairs.
- The establishment of a Royal Commission of Inquiry (RCI) to investigate if there has been any interference with the judiciary.
- Expeditious filling of the numerous vacancies in the judiciary, which it said has led to a “looming crisis that must be averted immediately”
Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR)’s Deputy President Nurul Izzah was also spotted in the crowd on Monday.
“Today, we exercise the right to peaceful assembly guaranteed by the constitution and upheld by the prime minister … in the spirit of reform and justice, which are the foundations of Keadilan (PKR), we need to improve the existing structure by making it more transparent,” Nurul Izzah told reporters.
She has called for a probe into allegations of judicial interference and leak of what is believed to be confidential minutes from the JAC meeting.
“It is important that these allegations be investigated to restore our trust in our judiciary,” said the eldest daughter of Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim on Monday, as quoted by local news outlet The Star.
Among other prominent figures spotted at the rally were Islamic party Parti Islam Se-Malaysia (PAS) secretary-general Takiyuddin Hassan, who had confirmed his opposition party’s participation earlier on Friday.
Other political figures like former Dewan Negara president Rais Yatim and former Deputy Minister of Human Resources and PAS Member of Parliament Awang Hashim were also seen, according to Free Malaysia Today.
The Dewan Negara is the upper house of the Parliament of Malaysia. Rais is a former law minister from the United Malays National Organisation, which is now part of Anwar’s coalition government.
Notable members of the legal fraternity - former attorney-general Tommy Thomas and former Malaysian Bar presidents Ambiga Sreenevasan and Karen Cheah, as well as lawyer Siti Kassim, were also spotted outside the Palace of Justice on Monday afternoon, local media reported.
WHAT NEXT?
On Jul 3, it was announced that Malaysia’s third-ranked judge, Chief Judge of Malaya Hasnah Mohammed Hashim, will take on the duties of the Chief Justice following Tengku Maimun Tuan Mat’s retirement the day before, as she reached the mandatory retirement age of 66.
Then-President of the Court of Appeal Abang Iskandar Abang Hashim retired a day later.
The judicial vacancies at the highest level have caused disquiet in Malaysia’s legal and political circles.
Earlier last week, nine Members of Parliament from Anwar’s PKR called for an RCI into high-profile vacancies in the country’s judiciary and for the prime minister to be summoned for an explanation.
They include former Economy Minister Rafizi Ramli and former Environment Minister Nik Nazmi Nik Ahmad, who both resigned from the Cabinet in May following defeats in the PKR’s internal elections.
On Sunday, Rafizi, who is PKR’s former deputy president, also warned that the ruling Pakatan Harapan (PH) coalition risks losing the support of its core supporters over the judiciary issues.
He also said that the push from the other backbencher MPs was not an act of sabotage against PKR, whose president is Anwar.
“If we do not speak up and this issue is not handled well, the impact on PH will be more severe. The impact on the country will be worse because voters and ordinary people who believe this country has a chance for change will feel that all hope is lost, that all politicians are the same,” he was quoted as saying by the New Straits Times.
However, the party has said that it is looking into calls for the nine MPs to face a disciplinary probe or be temporarily suspended for their actions.
Meanwhile, various politicians including opposition bloc Perikatan Nasional (PN) chairman and former prime minister Muhyiddin Yassin have called for an investigation into allegations of abuse of power and judicial interference after the leak of the supposed excerpts from the JAC meeting held in May.
The excerpts from the purported minutes had said that the former chief justice had raised concerns about the integrity of a candidate for an administrative post in the judiciary, Free Malaysia Today reported.
There were also claims made in the meeting minutes that the judge in question had once attempted to influence the outcome of a case in favour of a specific party and had sought the transfer of a fellow judge for holding a different view.
“These claims must be thoroughly investigated and corrective action must be taken to ensure that judicial appointments are made with integrity so that public confidence in the judiciary as a pillar of justice remains intact,” Muhyiddin said on Monday, as quoted by Free Malaysia Today.
He added that if these claims were indeed true, the appointment of the judge in question would violate Section 23(2)(a) of the JAC Act 2009 on judicial integrity.
Malaysian authorities have launched an investigation into the alleged leak of the meeting minutes under the Official Secrets Act and two other laws.
The JAC vets and recommends candidates for judges to the prime minister.
Under the Federal Constitution, the King is the one who appoints judges in Malaysia’s top courts, based on the prime minister’s advice and after consulting the Conference of Rulers.
The Conference of Rulers is expected to meet from this Tuesday to Thursday.
Law Minister Azalina Othman Said has said that the Cabinet assures that the vacancies for the two highest-ranked posts in the judiciary will be filled according to the Federal Constitution and the relevant laws.
