A DRAFT bill for a communal harmony and reconciliation body is slated to be ready early next year, said Deputy Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Hanipa Maidin.

The body, tentatively called the National Harmony and Reconciliation Commission, was first proposed by the National Unity Consultative Council. It had been established by the former Barisan Nasional government.

Putrajaya is currently gathering feedback from stakeholders as well as studying the experience of other countries which have similar bodies, Hanipa told the Dewan Rakyat today.

“We are in the process of consulting stakeholders and drafting such a bill. We hope to get it ready by early next year and table it in the cabinet,” Hanipa said in reply to a question from Lim Lip Eng (PH-Kepong).

Hanipa said the government must also ensure that the new commission’s functions do not conflict with other similar bodies, such as the Malaysian Human Rights Commission (Suhakam).

However, the administration will not introduce any new law to deal with hate speech as current provisions under the Penal Code and the Communications and Multimedia Act are sufficient.

“We have enough instruments under the Penal Code while some parts of the CMA are especially strict in dealing with hate speech. In some cases, the CMA does not provide bail for offenders,” Hanipa said. – November 28, 2019.