She said although it was voted in without a contest, Malaysia must commit to upholding, defending and promoting human rights for all in its own backyard or else its seat will only be cosmetic and meaningless.

The party’s international secretary for the women’s wing said the five pressing issues Ismail Sabri Yaakob must attempt to resolve immediately are:

• Reform the criminal justice system to abolish the death penalty;
• Amend the Law Reform (Marriage and Divorces) Act 1974 and shariah provisions to set the minimum age for marriage at 18;
• Withdraw the appeal against the High Court decision that allows for automatic citizenship of children born overseas to Malaysian mothers;
• Table the bill for the setting up of an Independent Police Complaints and Misconduct Commission in the coming Parliament sitting; and
• Ratify international treaties such as the Rome Statute, the Second Protocol to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, the UN Convention Against Torture and the 1951 Refugee Convention, among others.

“The prime minister must first look at all the violations of human rights happening in our own backyard and how difficult it is to get the government to understand that these issues are vital,” Kasthuri said in a statement today.

The Batu Kawan MP said since Ismail has declared that Malaysia was ready to play an active role to “facilitate international reconciliation, cooperation and consensus building”, he should ensure that such an approach was taken at home too.

“A seat in the UN Human Rights Council must be utilised as a golden opportunity for Malaysia to undo wrong practices in the past and to act as a party to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, as mentioned by the prime minister himself.

“Malaysians must push for the government to be accountable for its conduct in our own backyard as a new member of the council for the next three years.”