I am sitting in The
Malaysian Centre for Constitutionalism and Human Rights which is also
affectionately known as, ‘The Pusat’. ‘The Pusat’ is nestled in amongst a
busy lane, up 4 very long flights of steps in a place called Bangsar, Kuala
Lumpur. As is my wont, I have found
myself in deep thought reflecting over what I’ve already learnt.
As an Australian who has recently completed her law degree,
I went in search for a place that would contribute to the next stage of my law
journey but it would have to hold a bit more interest than some corporate law office back home
on the Gold Coast. It would appear that I have certainly found this!
Upon telling a Malaysian that I am at a human rights centre, they will often laugh and say, “We have a
human rights centre….errrrr, we have human rights”? Yep, apparently you do. In
fact, Malaysia has ratified three Conventions. They are the Convention on the
Rights of the Child (CRC), the Convention on The Elimination of All Forms Of
Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW), both in 1995; and Convention on the
Rights of Persons with Disabilities (2010). The Human Rights Commission of
Malaysia (Suruhanjaya Hak Asasi Malaysia) better known locally as Suhakam is
currently hoping to get the government to ratify six core United Nations (UN)
Human Rights conventions, including the International Convention on the
Elimination of all Forms of Racial Discrimination; the International Covenant
on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, and the UN Convention against Torture.
I became interested in Malaysia via social media. Whilst
completing my law degree, I became friends with one Malaysian and in turn,
became friends with many who kept me both entertained and informed as I sat on
my computer.... supposedly studying.
As we interacted, I became aware of the political situation
within Malaysia, I became aware of such acts as the Internal Security Act
(ISA), and I became aware of the need for a clean and fair electoral system via
the BERSIH movement and in turn, I became involved by organising BERSIH 2.0 in
Brisbane. http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/sideviews/article/bersih-down-under-mary-odonovan
So, when I went in search for a place to do my internship,
Malaysia was the obvious choice and hence, here I am, sitting in ‘The Pusat’ after walking up those very long 4 flights of steps, in some place called
Bangsar.
I am about to complete my first week here and I must admit
that what I have found has both intrigued and shocked me. As I previously
mentioned, I had heard about many aspects of Malaysia but in the three and a
half years of interacting with Malaysians, I had never heard about the plight of
the Orang Asli nor about this thing called ‘Strategic Litigation’. The latter
can be excused as it is a legal action which will be discussed later but the
lack of any mention of Malaysia’s Indigenous People, has left me shocked.
Upon being in any discussion with a Malaysian, I am always informed that there are three races in Malaysia; the Malays, The Chinese
and the Indians. The Indigenous group, Orang Asli, was never mentioned. In
fact, I am pretty sure that I was incorrectly informed that the Malays were the
Indigenous People.
I can actually forgive this incorrect information being
given to me after I read an excerpt from the book, ‘The Politics of
Indigeneity. Dialogues and Reflections of Indigenous Activism’. On page 95, it
says
“…the former prime minister of
Malaysia….is quoted as saying, ‘nowhere are [Indigenous peoples] regarded as
the definitive people of the country concerned. The definitive people are those
who set up the first governments… Malays have always been the definitive people
of the Malay-Peninsula’.
I always think that awareness is the first step within any
situation that requires a solution. Hence, I have found myself researching this
group of people and over the next five weeks, I look forward to learning how ‘The Pusat’
will assist them through empowering them with knowledge regarding their rights.
Over the last week, I have also come across a phrase called
Strategic Litigation.
As with most situations in my life, when answers are readily
sought, I turn to social media. Hence, I asked, “I am just curious, who knows
what Strategic Litigation is?” The answers ranged from the humorous, “Lawyers
strategic ...really. That's in the billing part of litigation hey” to the more
informed, “I'm fairly certain it's the idea of taking cases to court with the
aim of using the case to create legislative change, or at least bring greater
public awareness or attention to a particular issue?” So, I’ll attempt to briefly explain what I’ve
learnt thus far.
Strategic Litigation is litigation used to achieve social
and political changes through ‘test cases’. It isn’t necessarily about justice for the
individual, it is also for society as a whole. The impact is hopefully lasting beyond
the initial case on both the population and government.
At ‘The Pusat’, they hold Strategic Litigation workshops
with an aim to impart legal skills in the practice of constitutional and human
rights law upon young lawyers and law students. By generating the interest of
young lawyers in the area of strategic litigation, they hope these skills will
be used as a tool to promote and mainstream constitutional and human rights law
in society. ‘The Pusat’ focuses ‘specifically
on two main objects of the Bar found in Section 42 of the Legal Professional
Act 1976, namely, to uphold the cause of justice without fear or favour and to
assist the public in all matters related to the law and administration of
justice’.
Although The Pusat is only two years old, it has already
built an impressive portfolio of cases before the Courts including freedom of
religion, freedom of expression, freedom of assembly, right to liberty and fair
trial, equality and non-discrimination and the right to vote.
Although my time here is short, I have no doubt that it will
be an extremely valuable time for me and I look forward to seeing how ‘The
Centre’ works.
I came across this quote over the last week and there is
something about it that struck a chord within, so I thought I would share it
with you:
“The world is not a given reality. We, as activists and
lawyers, are here to shape it. Not for
us to be shaped by it.”
