Proham acknowledges Najib's commitment on human rights issues

PETALING JAYA: Proham on Friday acknowledged Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak's statement on his commitment to human rights issues but asked for clarification of his usage of certain terms.

Proham (the association for the promotion of human rights in Malaysia) said in a statement that it acknowledged "this clear commitment by the Prime Minister and Government of Malaysia to human rights, respect for others faiths and adherence to the UDHR."

However, it said the confusing terms such as “extreme human rights” and “human rights-ism” (which the prime minister reportedly used in a speech in Kuantan) were still not clarified.

Proham issued the statement in response to Najib's earlier comments where he said:

“The Malaysian government is committed to the principles and values of human rights.

“Ours is a majority-Muslim nation. But our faith respects other faiths, and our commitment can be consistent with our constitution and our values.

“As Malaysians, we believe in human rights, and subscribe to the philosophy, concepts and norms of the Universal Declaration on Human Rights.”

Proham called on the PM’s office to issue Najib's statement through Bernama and be made available through the PM’s website.

"One way forward is for the Prime Minister to host a gathering of human rights organisations who have played and is playing a major role in the promotion and protection of human rights for a dialogue on how to foster a culture of human rights consistent with UDHR as well as understanding the local history and context of Malaysia.

"In addition Proham calls on the Federal Government to chart out a National Human Rights Action Plan which is long overdue, as well as ratify the core human rights conventions such as ICERD as discussed in the UPR process," the statement said.