The government today named former attorney-general Abu Talib Othman as the new chief of the two-year-old Human Rights Commission of Malaysia (Suhakam).

Abu Talib will takeover from Musa Hitam, a former deputy prime minister, whose two-year term expires Wednesday, the foreign ministry said in a statement issued to Bernama news agency.

It said King Tuanku Syed Sirajuddin Putra Jamallulail has consented to the appointment of Abu Talib as well as five new Suhakam commissioners and the reappointment of seven others for a two-year term.

The government thanked Musa and the other outgoing members - former judges Annuar Zainal Abidin and Mahadev Shankar, Salleh Mohamed Nor and Mehrun Siraj for their contributions.

They will be replaced by five new commissioners for a two-year term.

The new commissioners are retired Treasury deputy secretary-general Ramon Navaratnam, the permanent representative to the United Nations Hasmy Agam, Institute of Islamic Understanding Malaysia (Ikim) director-general Dr Abdul Monir Yaacob, retired Education Ministry director-general Asiah Abu Samah and retired National Population and Family Development Board director-general Dr Raj Abdul Karim.

"Suhakam has conducted various activities and played its role in the field of human rights protection and development in Malaysia during its two years of operation," the statement said.

Removal an attack

But local rights group Suaram questioned why the terms for the four commissioners were not renewed, saying they had made significant progress in advancing the cause of human rights.

Anuar, a former chief justice of Malaya, and Mehrun were members of a Suhakam inquiry into a November 2000 anti-government protest, which found police used excessive force against supporters of jailed ex-deputy premier Anwar Ibrahim.

"We are of the opinion that their removal is an attack on the independence of Suhakam," Suaram said in a statement endorsed by 29 non-governmental organisations.

"We urge that they be reinstated into Suhakam without delay to safeguard the integrity, transparency and independence of this institution."

All Suhakam commissioners are hand-picked by Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad but the body has in the past issued reports critical of Malaysia's human rights record.

In August, Suhakam called for greater freedoms of expression, including a British-style "Speakers' Corners" and an relaxing of police control on rallies.

But Mahathir has dismissed the proposals, saying they ignored national security concerns.

Last week, the two-year-old Suhakam was sued for failing to carry out a public inquiry into attacks on minority Indians that left six dead more than a year ago.