I wish to comment on the non-governmental organisations' boycott of Suhakam for 100 days especially in relation to Sisters in Islam. Zainah Anwar is SIS' executive director as well as a Suhakam commissioner whose term was recently renewed.

I wonder how this boycott would affect Zainah's credibility in Suhakam and SIS. We have not seen very much of her commitment to very 'hot' issues where Anuar Zainal Abidin and Mehrun Siraj have gone out on a limb to make a stand.

If the Zainah wearing her NGO hat has very good reasons to support the boycott, she has to be more proactive in her commitment to human rights complaints to the commission. She cannot hide by being in some safe working group on law reform in the commission. She has to be more hands-on if she wants to be taken seriously as a commissioner.

By the way, I think people are clamouring for so many changes in the law and the working group on law reform has really not done very much. If we remember the election law amendments, there was not even any squeak from Suhakam by way of comment even though they have a mandate on law reform.

Prof Mohd Hamdan Adnan of Fomca is more consistent in human rights principles while wearing both NGO and Suhakam hats. He has been out there in numerous NGO meetings facing public wrath for Suhakam's "inactivities", for example the Kampong Medan racial clashes.