Courts should be given decision making powers independently - Wan Junaidi

KUALA LUMPUR: Minister in the Prime Minister's Department (Parliament and Law) Datuk Seri Wan Junaidi Tuanku Jaafar strongly believes that for the judiciary, the courts should be given decision making powers independently without influence and interference from anyone.

He said this would also extend to situations where judges need to use their discretion in sentencing offenders.

The minister cited the Cabinet's decision to abolish the mandatory death penalty and to give judges discretion in sentencing as an example of maintaining the judiciary's independence.

"The Cabinet's decision to abolish the mandatory death penalty in Malaysia mainly revolves around providing discretion to judges to decide on the most appropriate sentence, given the varied circumstances of the case before them," he said.

Wan Junaidi said this in his keynote address at the Simposium University Malaya-National University of Singapore Hybrid: Constitutional Amendments and The Basic Structure in Malaysia, here today.

When explaining the amendments that were made to the Federal Constitution, the minister said that over the past six decades, the Federal Constitution has been changed no less than 57 times.

"During my tenure alone, it was amended three times. The Constitution should not be stagnant. Amendments that help it serve its purpose are good amendments," he said.

He further said that, unlike other fields, the law is ever evolving with constant balancing of multiple contrasting considerations.

"(It) Requires lawmakers to be humble to realise where they have erred and the law can be improved, even on questions as settled as the Constitution. Thus, I encourage the future lawmakers of the country to continue questioning, thinking, and analysing," said the minister.

-- BERNAMA