Un Urges Govt To Restore Monitoring Access To Detention Centres

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The United Nations has called on Putrajaya to let monitoring bodies and the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees access detention facilities.
UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk divulged that he heard of worrying accounts of harsh conditions and ill-treatment of refugees and migrants that need to be investigated.
“It would be important for the government to adopt a comprehensive refugee protection system, reinforcing the legal status of refugees, and enabling their access to employment, formal education, health, and other essential services.
“It is important that disinformation campaigns and hate speech against migrants and refugees are stemmed.
“Migrants’ manifold contributions to society need to be validated, honoured, and appreciated,” he told a press conference at the UN office in Putrajaya today.
Turk (above) is on a working visit to Malaysia today at the invitation of the government.
The Foreign Ministry said in a statement yesterday (June 3) that the visit is part of Malaysia’s ongoing engagement with the UN to raise human rights awareness.
Turk met Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim and held meetings with several ministers. He also met with the Human Rights Commission of Malaysia (Suhakam) and members of civil society.
This is Turk’s maiden trip to Southeast Asia as high commissioner for human rights. He is accompanied by senior officials from Geneva and Bangkok. They will also visit Thailand and Laos.
This is the second visit by a UN high commissioner for human rights to Malaysia, following former high commissioner Michelle Bachelet’s visit in 2019.
Review colonial laws
Turk also called on the government to review “colonial-era” laws such as the Sedition Act and other “vague and overly-broad” legislations like the Security Offences (Special Measures) Act (Sosma).
He also urged the review of laws that have been continuously used against activists.
“Laws such as the Communications and Multimedia Act (CMA), the Peaceful Assembly Act, and Printing Presses and Publications Act (PPPA) continue to be used against human rights defenders, including environmental human rights defenders.
“For a society to be able to harness creativity, innovation, and progress, people must be able to express dissenting views without fear of reprisal,” he said.
He also urged the immediate increase of women’s representation in decision-making positions, which he said was currently very low.
Meanwhile, he welcomed the country’s adoption of several acts, in particular the Anti-Sexual Harassment Act 2022, Anti-Stalking Act - which is Section 507A of the Penal Code - as well as the Sexual Offences Against Children Act 2017.
“The abolition of mandatory capital punishment and the reduction in the number of offences punishable by death are also very welcome steps, and I hope this will pave the way for a moratorium on the use of the death penalty.
“I also welcome initiatives to decriminalise the possession of small amounts of illicit drugs. It is important that a human rights and health-based approach be taken in managing the drug problem,” he added. - Mkini

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