Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi's leadership has failed to meet expectations despite the two affirmations given to him by the country and his party, said human rights organisation Suaram today.

Suaram director Dr Kua Kia Soong said expectations were high when Abdullah took over from Dr Mahathir Mohamad last October.

The new premier had pledged to weed out corruption and bring about reforms, leading to a grand victory in the general election and the reaffirmation for his leadership during the Umno polls.

"Unfortunately, the substance of reform has been lacking. Laws long considered as draconian and contrary to international human rights norms have neither been reviewed nor repealed," Kua said when presenting Suaram's executive summary on the country's civil and political rights in Kuala Lumpur.

The 21-page summary is an excerpt from its 2004 annual report which is expected to be released early next year. The summary was launched in conjunction with the World Human Rights Day today.

"We have been told to give Pak Lah (Abdullah) a chance and wait after the Umno polls to strengthen his position in the party.
"However when his son-in-law (Umno Youth vice-chief Khairy Jamaluddin) was booed at during the Umno Youth general assembly, it showed that maybe Pak Lah's position is not very strong, we were told to wait again, this is like an eternal wait to give Pak Lah a chance," said the Suaram director.

Genuine reforms

The veteran human rights activist said the civil society should not be kept waiting. He urged the premier to carry out genuine reforms immediately but was also pessimistic of such moves transpiring.

"Given the Malaysian government's performance over the past year, there is little to indicate that the trend and practice to restrict democratic space and civil liberties will wane in future," he added.

Apart from the Internal Security Act, the Emergency Ordinance and Dangerous Drugs Act which allow suspects to be detained without trial, he said laws that affect press freedom and freedom of expression also remain in force.

He added that the police continue to deny the right to peaceful assembly while there have been no improvements in the rights of Malaysians to freedom of association.

Kua said the prime minister's declaration that non-governmental organisations are the "government's eyes and ears" has also been proven to be an empty call.

He noted that the Malaysian Trade Union Congress and Chinese education movement Dong Jiao Zong are still trying in vain to meet Abdullah.

Tainted elections

Also highlighted in the summary was the setting up of the Police Royal Commission but Kua said expectations were modest given the commission's vague and overly broad terms of reference.

"Even though media reports of police brutality appeared to have declined in 2004, there were still numerous incidents where police powers were flagrantly abused," he added.

On the elections, the Suaram director said the March 21 polls were tainted with reports of irregularities and unfair practices.

Kua also took the Human Rights Commission of Malaysia (Suhakam) to task for endorsing the government-proposed anti-terror legislation in the commission's annual report.

He said the endorsement contradicted the opinions of civil society groups.

"Overall, bureaucratic constraints continues to circumscribe Suhakam's effectiveness in promoting governmental compliance with human rights standards," he added.

Anwar's release

As for the 'bright spots' in the nation's human rights record this year, Kua said it was the release of ex-deputy premier Anwar Ibrahim and several other political detainees.
"While the court gave favourable judgements in these cases, it cannot be presumed that the judiciary has in any way gained true independence," he added.

Other cases that were compiled in the Suaram executive summary included freedom of religion, as well as issues concerning refugees, illegal immigrants and migrant workers.

Kua described 2004 as a bad year for these foreigners since the authorities employed 'ruthless measures' against them.