Malaysia To Abolish Mandatory Death Penalty

Malaysia will abolish the mandatory death penalty, the government said on Friday and replace it with 'alternative punishments' at the discretion of the courts.

Law Minister Wan Junaidi Tuanku Jaffar said in a statement that after reviewing the findings of an expert report into proposed alternatives, the government will now consider proposed alternative sentences for the 11 offences that carry the mandatory death sentence. It will also look into the use of the death penalty in 22 other offences.

"This shows the government's emphasis on ensuring that the rights of all parties are protected and guaranteed, reflecting the transparency of the country's leadership in improving the criminal justice system," he said.

Relevant laws will be amended, the statement said, adding that further research would be carried out on alternative sentences for a number of crimes that carry the death penalty, including drug offences. 

Wan Junaidi's statement however did not say when the government expected to conclude its review of alternative sentences or give an indication of what the changes might entail. 

Like many other nations in Southeast Asia, Malaysia has notoriously tough drug laws, including capital punishment for traffickers. Malaysia took its first steps towards the abolition of the death penalty in October 2018 during the short-lived Pakatan Harapan government, and currently has a moratorium on executions. However, laws imposing the death penalty remained and courts were required to impose the mandatory death sentence on convicted drug traffickers. Terrorist acts, murder, and rape resulting in death also still warranted a mandatory death penalty.

The Anti-Death Penalty Asia Network (ADPAN) said in a statement that it welcomed the move towards abolition of the mandatory sentence, which it said "does not provide justice as it deprives judges of the discretion to sentence based on the situation of each individual offender". It also called for reforms in the criminal justice system, including redefining drug cases, to differentiate between drug mules and actual traffickers.

The New York-based Human Rights Watch welcomed the announcement as a positive step, but said it was important to ensure Malaysia follows through.

"We need to see Malaysia pass the actual legislative amendments to put this pledge into effect because we have been down this road before, with successive Malaysian governments promising much on human rights but ultimately delivering very little," its deputy Asia director Phil Robertson said.