Human rights in Malaysia
Recent sweeping changes in these laws have been described by the government as human rights reforms but, according to critics, have actually, in some regards, made restrictions even more stringent.
Hence, while claiming to "uphold... the universal principles of human rights," Malaysia finds it important to "take into account the history of the country as well as the religious, social and cultural diversities of its communities.
"[6] There are several strong and sweeping pieces of legislation that have long been used by Malaysia to restrict the human rights of individuals and thus preserve, in its view, social order.
[2][3] Another powerful and widely employed piece of legislation, which dates back to 1948, when Malaysia was still a British colony, is the Sedition Act, which criminalizes speech or writing that is considered to be seditious.
[19][20] In November 2012, Prime Minister Najib Razak signed the first human rights declaration by the ASEAN nations, an action that officially committed Malaysia "to its first foreign convention to promote fair treatment of every individual irrespective of race, religion and political opinion."
This signing, it was noted, took place at a time when Malaysia had "come under close international scrutiny for its alleged mishandling of several recent human rights issues," including crackdowns on two major pro-democracy protests in July 2011 and April 2012.
On 17 September 2012, several dozen international human rights groups issued a joint press release protesting what they described as "the Malaysian government's ongoing harassment" of Suara Rakyat Malaysia.
[citation needed] On 8 July 2020, Human Right Watch reported that Malaysian authorities have initiated criminal investigations against people criticising the government.
[35] Though Malaysia has a multi-party parliamentary system of government with a constitutional monarchy, the United Malays National Organisation (UMNO) had held power since 1957 and opposition parties do not compete on a level playing ground.
Under Section 375 of the Penal Code, rape only happens when a man's penis enters a woman's vagina without consent, or when the women being penetrated is under the age of 16.
[45][46] In 2017, the Penal Code was amended in Section 377CA to cover this legal loophole by expanding the definition of "sexual connection by objects" to include any body parts other than the penis, which makes it punishable with 5 to 30 years of imprisonment and whipping.
Marital rape is not officially recognised as a crime in Malaysia, but since 2007, Section 375A has been added to the Penal Code to outlawed husbands from deliberately hurting their wives for sex.
The 20-point agreement, or the 20-point memorandum, is a list of 20 points drawn up for North Borneo, proposing terms for its incorporation into the new federation as Sabah, during negotiations prior to the formation of Malaysia on 16 September 1963.
[clarification needed] Some of the twenty points were incorporated, to varying degrees, into what became the Constitution of Malaysia; others were merely accepted orally, thus not gaining legal status.
Siti Hasnah Banggarma, who was born a Hindu, but was forcibly converted to Islam at age 7, desired to reconvert back to Hinduism and appealed to the courts to recognise her reconversion.
[76] Laws forbidding sodomy and unnatural carnal intercourse are occasionally enforced, and there is considerable social prejudice founded in the Islamic view of homosexuality,[25] although the situation in this regard is reportedly improving.
[78] In two speeches given in June and July 2012 to Muslim groups, Prime Minister Najib Razak described gays as a "deviant culture" that had no place in Malaysia.
In December of that year, Human Rights Watch decried Najib's remarks, saying that his "actions against LGBT people are a glaring contradiction to his self-proclaimed profile as a 'global moderate' leader."
But if such rights were included in the declaration, "Malaysia as a Muslim-majority country would have to reiterate her strong objections; as such a policy clearly contradicts the principles enshrined in the religion of Islam."
On 31 October 2023, the Human Resources Ministry in Malaysia stated that it is currently examining an appropriate mechanism to allow refugees registered with the UNHCR to seek employment.
Tens of thousands of Rohingya, a mostly Muslim minority who have long been persecuted in Myanmar, have sought safety in Malaysia with many risking dangerous boat journeys to get to the country following a brutal military crackdown in 2017.
[25] In 2020, the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) had banned Malaysian products of Sime Darby Plantation, the world's biggest palm oil planter by land size, from entering the United States, citing reasonable suspicion of use of forced labour.
[85] Companies have been accused of demanding excessive overtime, not paying wages, retaining workers’ identity documents and keeping them in debt bondage.
[86] On 13 July 2022, Indonesia announced a freeze on sending its citizen migrant workers to Malaysia, citing a breach in the One Channel System, which was linked to allegations of trafficking and forced labour.
[25] In addition, there have been several cases of extra-judicial enforced disappearances: Raymond Koh and Amri Che Mat were abducted by agents of the Malaysian Special Branch.
[citation needed] Privacy rights are sometimes infringed upon, with the authorities monitoring emails sent to websites and police permitted to search homes, confiscate items, and take people into custody without a warrant.
Officials from the Department of Islamic Development Malaysia (JAKIM) may even enter private premises without a warrant if they suspect Muslims are gambling, consuming alcohol, or committing adultery.
[citation needed] Under the new SOSMA legislation, the prosecutor at a trial is permitted to keep secret the identity of prosecution witnesses, thus preventing cross-examination.
A 6 December 2010 report by Amnesty International entitled A Blow to Humanity criticises the practice of judicial caning in Malaysia and concludes the punishment "subjects thousands of people each year to systematic torture and ill-treatment, leaving them with permanent physical and psychological scars".
In a letter dated 10 December 2007, the Ministry of Internal Security banned the Malay-language section of the Catholic Herald due to its use of "Allah" to refer to God in Christianity.
