MULTIPLE developments have occurred since Friday regarding the abolition of mandatory death penalty, where the government made a statement committing to a study of the legislation.

Meanwhile, the most recent statement today said there will be an announcement tomorrow about roughly 2,000 convicts who are at present on death row.

This has caused disquiet and many questions abound over these two developments.

The government’s announcements are certainly a welcome move, but only the first of many steps moving forward.

The government may impose a moratorium on a policy basis, ie to halt all executions while a more detailed study is carried out and laws will eventually have to be amended.

The death penalty is entrenched in existing laws, including the penal code, Firearms (Increased Penalties) Act 1971, and Armed Forces Act.

Many questions have to be addressed incrementally, accounting for the views and sentiments of the cabinet, and MPs too.

What this entails is that the government will have to table bills in Parliament to amend the laws.

MPs will have to be consulted and the bills debated upon. For the imposition of the death penalty carries an element of irreversible finality to it, so the principles and merits of the bill must be scrutinised deeply.

This is over and above the fact that attitudes towards death penalty vary across demographic lines, with many still holding on to the opinion that the death penalty ought to be retained for the most heinous of crimes.

Perhaps we may take a cue from the drafting of anti-party hopping Law, where a parliamentary special select committee should be established to scrutinise all the existing laws to which the mandatory death penalty is attached, thus accounting for the views of MPs across party lines, experts and of course, the victims, and next of kin of victims.

The committee will be able to fast track the process for law reform by providing a platform for legal discourse and debates via a multi-party committee of MPs, organisations and stakeholders.

This will help restore the public’s faith in a system that is transparent and inclusive.  

As a backbencher, I have witnessed the present Keluarga Malaysia government demonstrating political will to embark on many overdue law reform efforts, to which I applaud.

However, with the present discourse on the abolition of mandatory death penalty, many of us are left in the dark, on the breadth and depth of the potential change in policy and law.

We are left to speculate on many fronts, which inhibits MPs like myself to contribute constructively to the debate.

The report Richard Malanjum prepared, but was not made public, creates more questions among MPs and the rakyat alike to understand the justifications of the study.

All that we have now are news headlines and brief government announcements, which are open to speculations. The final say should rest in the hands of the rakyat through their MPs. – June 12, 2022.

* Azalina Othman Said is the MP for Pengerang.

* This is the opinion of the writer or publication and does not necessarily represent the views of The Malaysian Insight. Article may be edited for brevity and clarity.