SIBU: It is not a wise move for the Attorney-General’s Chamber to replace the English text of the federal Constitution with Bahasa Malaysia translation as the authoritative text, says Senator Robert Lau Hui Yew.
Lau, who was commenting on a statement made by the federal Attorney-General during the opening of legal year 2023 in Putrajaya, pointed out that the use of English was deeply entrenched in the nation’s legal system.
“Landmark cases hinged on the interpretations of the words in the Constitution and many times, on a single word. There are wide resources to draw on from the Commonwealth countries which all use English.
“The whole reservoir of legal jurisprudence and case laws in published law journals that have accumulated over more than a century in this country and over several centuries in other commonwealth countries is in English,” he said on Friday (Jan 13).
Lau stressed that one of the foundations of a strong legal system was the certainty of the law as they had to be unambiguous for it to be implemented fairly and properly hence the uncertainty and ambiguity in the interpretation of written laws was bad for every stakeholder.
He noted that English was also the language of trade and commerce both domestically and internationally and the legal system was an important element of an efficient business ecosystem.
“It is, therefore, crucial that the language in the legal system is the same as that used in the commercial world. The use of language in our legal system should not become an issue of nationalism.”
The Bawang Assan SUPP chief said Sarawak’s official language was English, thus such a move would encroach on and curtail the autonomy of Sarawak rights.
“The Sarawak government has made it clear that English is an official language in Sarawak. Malaysia Agreement 1963 and the Inter-Government Committee (IGC) Report are in English. These two documents form the backbone of the federal constitution in 1963.
“The proper implementation of MA63 and the IGC Report also requires correct interpretation of the words in these documents. Any change to the federal constitution must not be done without the express consent of the Sarawak people through the Sarawak Assembly.”
He stressed that Sarawak was one of the three partners of Malaysia and major decisions that affected the whole federation must not be made until and unless all the partners of the federation were consulted and consented to those decisions.
“The proposed change to the federal constitution on the use of language is a major decision that cannot be made unilaterally,” he stressed.
