‘Harmony bill not finalised yet’

The New Straits Times
by SHARANPAL SINGH RANDHAWA

KUALA LUMPUR: THE perception that the National Harmony Act draft bill has been prepared and will be presented by the government in Parliament is not true.

Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Nancy Shukri said the bill had yet to be finalised as it was still going through the process of consultation with stakeholders.

The government would not do anything in a hurry or enact a law that could disrupt national harmony, she said.

“As I mentioned during the Parliament session in Dewan Rakyat recently, I, again, would like to clarify that I understand there were three working draft bills on national harmony, which were recommended by the Legislative and Policies to Promote National Harmony under the National Unity Consultative Council (NUCC).

“However, all these remain as recommendations rather than something that has been finalised by the government.”

Nancy said the bill must go through a rigorous process of drafting and its contents shall not conflict with the Federal Constitution.

It will then be reviewed and examined by the Attorney-General to ensure conformity with the principles of law and in accordance with the Constitution and other related laws.

“Only upon completion of all negotiations and engagement process, the final draft bill proposed by NUCC will be forwarded to the Attorney-General for review and further refined as the process of drafting laws that apply in this country. Only then it can be brought for approval to the cabinet before being tabled in Parliament.”

On July 11, 2012, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak had indicated the government’s intention to repeal the Sedition Act 1948 and replace it with a new act, known as the National Harmony Act.

The objective of the National Harmony Act is not only to strengthen the law but also to find a mechanism to determine the best balance between the need to guarantee the right to freedom of expression contained in the constitution and allow legal actions taken against those who use sensitive issues to undermine national solidarity.

NUCC, which is under the purview of the National Unity and Integration Department (NUID), an agency under the supervision of Tan Sri Joseph Kurup, had consulted stakeholders, including non-governmental organisations, for their input.

NUCC is an independent body set up by the government on Sept 11 last year in an effort to reduce the national unity and racial polarisation to build a united Malaysian nation.

It is intended to discuss complex issues in Malaysian society to pave the way for a solution and close the gap that prevents unity.

Nancy said the Sedition Act 1948 remained in force until its repeal was announced at a later date.

“The input of the proposed drafts are being researched and studied.”

She said the submission of the drafts did not mean the suggestions given had been agreed to, adding that elements such as the diversity of religions and races in the country, including Islam as the official religion of the Federation and the rulers as enshrined in the constitution, would be taken into consideration for each proposal.