PETALING JAYA: Malaysia's policies and the Federal Constitution may not be as easy to amend as some politicians think, even with the risk of the private free trade agreement (FTA) talks.
Klang MP (DAP) Charles Santiago said recently that the outcome of the two FTA negotations could change Malaysia's laws and the Federal Constitution without parliamentary consent.
Monash University political analyst James Chin, however, disagreed with Santiago's warnings, saying that it was difficult to change the constitution without involving the monarchy.
“You cannot touch articles such as Articles 151, 152 (and) 153 without the consent of two-thirds of Parliament and the Rulers,” said Chin.
Certain Articles involving the special position of Bumiputeras or the status of Islam require the approval of a two-thirds parliamentary majority and the Conference of Rulers.
Chin added that it was more likely that several Malaysian regulations and laws would be modified to fit labour practices after the FTA negotiations had been concluded.
Nevertheless, he said that Parliament needed to be wary of Bills being passed when changes were being introduced.
“The Malaysian Parliament is not very good with technical details. Sometimes, four to five Bills get passed at once,” he said.
Chin also cautioned against crying wolf against the FTA. “It's too early to tell or to raise an alarm over what may happen. They haven't even agreed on an agenda yet,” said Chin.
He said that FTA negotiations did not need to be conducted in the open as with other major trade talks such as the World Trade Organisation (WTO) discussions.
Major step for the country
Unlike Chin, former Transparency International Malaysia president Ramon Navaratnam said that the Malaysian public needed to be familiar with the topics in the FTA negotiations.
“There should have been talks and discussions by the ministers involved as was done with the Economic Transformation Programme (ETP),” he said.
Navaratnam said that the public deserved to know which way the country would be heading when it came to the FTA because it was a major step for the country.
“It's better to have discussions and consultations later than not have it at all, otherwise it can cause problems for the people,” he said.
Malaysians, said Navaratnam, would not be happy if policy changes were announced without warning. If push came to shove, the government would lose out at the ballot box.
Santiago had warned that the FTA negotiations could adversely affect the business future of small and medium enterprises (SMEs). More than 95% of Malaysia's business comes from SMEs.
Even so, Navaratnam was not opposed to the idea of an FTA.
“FTAs are part and parcel of a worldwide trend. We must face reality and look forward instead of resorting to being on the defensive,” he said.
"Malaysia must look towards competition and meritocracy to progress. We are no longer an agricultural or a manufacturing-based economy.
We are moving into a services-based economy, and have to follow economic forces instead of tilling the soil and making cheap electronics.”
Malaysia is expected to begin its first round of FTA negotiations with the European Union in Brussels from Dec 6-7.
Separate negotiations with the US and eight other nations, including Australia, Singapore and Vietnam over the Trans-Pacific Partnership FTA are scheduled from Dec 6-10 in New Zealand.
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