KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 10 – The Bar Council joined Teoh Beng Hock’s kin today in demanding the Najib administration set up a Royal Commission of Inquiry (RCI) to probe the young political aide’s death, a day after the Attorney-General admitted having a note which could change the course of an ongoing inquest.
“We reiterate our longstanding call for the establishment of a Royal Commission of Inquiry (RCI) to investigate Teoh Beng Hock’s death,” its president, Ragunath Kesavan said today.
He was censuring the government’s top lawyer for withholding “a crucial document from the coroner’s court in the Teoh Beng Hock inquest”, believed to be the last note penned by Teoh before his mysterious death on July 16 last year.
“The RCI should also examine the shortcomings within the criminal justice system, and ensure that protocols are introduced to guarantee full compliance with accepted norms of the criminal justice system.
“The suppression of evidence, particularly in such a high profile matter, is disturbing, regardless of the reason. This action is indicative of a serious lapse of judgment and undermines the proceedings of the inquest,” Ragunath said.
In a media statement yesterday, the AG’s Chambers said it will only tender a document as evidence if it is satisfied that any shroud of suspicion surrounding it is lifted.
Ragunath disagreed.
“It is the duty of the court, and not of the prosecution, to determine the authenticity or relevance of any piece of evidence,” he added, stressing that the AG’s job was to disclose all information to help the court find out how Teoh really died.
He pointed out that the AG’s failure to tender the paper immediately after it was found instead of 10 months later had jeopardised the future outcome of the inquest.
“The failure to produce the document as soon as it was discovered raises misgivings about the credibility and fairness of the prosecution, and its poor judgment points to the lack of transparency,” Ragunath said.
He stressed that the government institution’s public image had taken a severe beating, putting “the credibility of the Malaysian criminal justice system... still very much in doubt” as the inquest continues to drag out over a year after it began.
Malaysian Insider
10/08/10
“We reiterate our longstanding call for the establishment of a Royal Commission of Inquiry (RCI) to investigate Teoh Beng Hock’s death,” its president, Ragunath Kesavan said today.
He was censuring the government’s top lawyer for withholding “a crucial document from the coroner’s court in the Teoh Beng Hock inquest”, believed to be the last note penned by Teoh before his mysterious death on July 16 last year.
“The RCI should also examine the shortcomings within the criminal justice system, and ensure that protocols are introduced to guarantee full compliance with accepted norms of the criminal justice system.
“The suppression of evidence, particularly in such a high profile matter, is disturbing, regardless of the reason. This action is indicative of a serious lapse of judgment and undermines the proceedings of the inquest,” Ragunath said.
In a media statement yesterday, the AG’s Chambers said it will only tender a document as evidence if it is satisfied that any shroud of suspicion surrounding it is lifted.
Ragunath disagreed.
“It is the duty of the court, and not of the prosecution, to determine the authenticity or relevance of any piece of evidence,” he added, stressing that the AG’s job was to disclose all information to help the court find out how Teoh really died.
He pointed out that the AG’s failure to tender the paper immediately after it was found instead of 10 months later had jeopardised the future outcome of the inquest.
“The failure to produce the document as soon as it was discovered raises misgivings about the credibility and fairness of the prosecution, and its poor judgment points to the lack of transparency,” Ragunath said.
He stressed that the government institution’s public image had taken a severe beating, putting “the credibility of the Malaysian criminal justice system... still very much in doubt” as the inquest continues to drag out over a year after it began.
Malaysian Insider
10/08/10
Posts
0 comments:
Post a Comment