Judicial reform in focus as Azalina leads comparative study with UK, Australia, India and Singapore

Malay Mail

2 days ago

KUALA LUMPUR, July 10 — Malaysia will now be looking at the way judges are appointed in four countries including the UK and Singapore, as part of efforts to consider how the country's judicial appointments system can be reformed.
The Prime Minister's Department's Legal Affairs Division (BHEUU) announced this following a preliminary discussion today between Minister in the Prime Minister's Department (Law and Institutional Reform) Datuk Seri Azalina Othman Said with the heads of two parliamentary special select committees.
'Among other things, this discussion agreed to carry out preliminary comparative research about the approaches of the judicial appointment systems in several selected countries, namely the United Kingdom, India, Australia and Singapore.
'This preliminary comparative research will give a holistic understanding about the process of judicial appointments in countries with similar systems in order to enable Malaysia to make an evidence-based evaluation of the need for reforms and to adapt best practices according to national context.
'This research is also intended to evaluate an effective model for judicial appointments, identify best practices and recommend reforms that are appropriate for Malaysia's context as a constitutional monarchy and in line with the Federal Constitution,' BHEUU said in the statement.
The statement said the Malaysian government through the BHEUU welcomes public feedback and the public's views about this matter.
'This inclusive approach is important to ensure each perspective is taken into account before the research outcome is tabled for the Cabinet's consideration.
'The government remains committed to strengthen public confidence by carrying out transparent and evidence-based reforms,' it concluded.
Earlier in the statement, the BHEUU said Azalina's meeting was with the Dewan Negara's Special Select Committee on Law Review's chairman Rita Sarimah Patrick Insol and with the Dewan Rakyat's Special Select Committee on Human Rights, Election and Institutional Reform's chairman MP William Leong Jee Keen.
The BHEUU said the meeting was held in relation to public concern about reforms in Malaysia's judicial system to ensure the integrity of the judiciary in upholding the rule of law.
BHEUU said both parliamentary committees' chairman had expressed concerns over the latest developments on the issue of judicial appointments and stressed the importance of more in-depth studies to ensure a more transparent and credible process of appointing judges.
Currently, in Malaysia, the Judicial Appointments Commission (JAC) vets and selects candidates to be recommended to the prime minister.
The prime minister can accept the recommendations or ask for alternative names from the JAC, and the Yang di-Pertuan Agong would appoint judges on the prime minister's advice and after consulting with the Conference of Rulers.
The Bingham Centre for the Rule of Law had in 2015 published a study on the best practices for appointing judges in the Commonwealth, with the report looking at 53 Commonwealth members including Malaysia.
There are currently 56 countries in the Commonwealth, including India, Australia and Singapore.
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