Slim hope to bring back Sirul from Australia
The government can only invoke an extradition treaty with Australia to repatriate Sirul Azhar Umar if his death sentence is commuted to imprisonment, said Home Minister Saifuddin Nasution Ismail.
Addressing a press conference this morning at the Parliament lobby, Saifuddin said there is a small window of opportunity to bring back...
The government can only invoke an extradition treaty with Australia to repatriate Sirul Azhar Umar if his death sentence is commuted to imprisonment, said Home Minister Saifuddin Nasution Ismail.
Addressing a press conference this morning at the Parliament lobby, Saifuddin said there is a small window of opportunity to bring back the former police commando following Malaysia's abolishment of the mandatory death penalty.
However, he said, the onus is on Sirul (above) to apply for the review through his lawyer in Malaysia, where the main suspect in the 2006 murder of Mongolian Altantuya Shaariibuu would still face a life jail sentence.
"Sirul has the right to apply for review through his lawyer. Only after all the processes (have been completed) can we apply for an extradition process.
"That is if his death sentence is commuted by the court, which is still hypothetical," Saifuddin added.
Elaborating, the minister said Malaysia's extradition treaty with Australia stipulates several conditions, including on dual criminality.
This means that extradition can only be invoked for offences that are considered a crime in both countries and carry the same amount of punishment.
In Sirul's case, Saifuddin said, the convict was punished with the death sentence in Malaysia while Australia does not recognise capital punishment.
"The onus is on him to apply. But I do not have information if he has done so or not," Saifuddin said.
The minister also agreed that Sirul will continue to be a free man in Australia if he does not apply for the judicial review.
"I have no idea," Saifuddin said when asked if he thinks Sirul will apply for his sentence to be commuted since he will still be facing a life sentence.
Altantuya, a Mongolian national, was murdered in October 2006 and her remains were blown up with military-grade explosives.
A separate criminal court convicted Sirul and Azilah Hadri, also a former police commando, of the murder and sentenced them to death in April 2009.
Azilah is on death row at Kajang Prison but Sirul fled to Australia prior to the Federal Court upholding the duo's conviction and death sentence in 2015.
The apex court reversed an earlier Court of Appeal's decision that quashed the guilty verdict of the two men. Sirul flew to Australia after the Court of Appeal ruling while the prosecution was appealing to the apex court.
Sirul was in the custody of Australian authorities, who have a policy of not deporting anybody facing the death penalty in the country of origin.
Malaysia has a moratorium in place on carrying out the death penalty and has not executed anyone since 2017, but the death penalty itself has not been repealed.
Sirul was released from Sydney's Villawood Detention Centre following a Nov 8 Australian High Court ruling against indefinite detention.
Some ppl dun wan him to be back I thk