GEORGE TOWN: The Malaysian government must make a formal request to Australia for the return of Sirul Azhar Umar, the murderer of Mongolian Altantuya Shaariibuu, following the abolishment of the death penalty.
Bukit Gelugor member of parliament Ramkarpal Singh said with the abolishment of the death penalty, the Australian government ought to extradite Sirul to Malaysia as there was no reason for him to be detained there any longer since he would no longer face the death penalty upon his return.
“The government must make a formal request to Australia for the return of Sirul as soon as possible after Parliament abolishes the death penalty so that Sirul serves his sentence here.
“Sirul’s sentence also ought to be reviewed and the harshest penalty ought to be imposed on him given the henious nature of his crime,” he said in a posting on his official Facebook page today.
Ramkarpal, the lawyer for Altantuya’s family, had repeatedly said that justice must be served in Altantuya’s case and Australia ought to play its part in ensuring that it was achieved by deporting Sirul back to the country.
He had also repeatedly said that Sirul must give his full cooperation to the authorities in investigations as to who ordered Altantuya’s murder, and had even called for a Royal Commission of Inquiry to reopen the murder case.
On April 9, 2009, the Shah Alam High Court sentenced Chief Inspector Azilah Hadri and Corporal Sirul Azhar Umar to death after finding them guilty of killing Antantuya, 28, at Mukim Bukit Raja, Shah Alam, Selangor between 10pm on October 19 and 1am on October 20, 2006.
On August 23, 2013, the Court of Appeal had allowed an appeal from Azilah and Sirul Azhar and freed them of the charge. However, on January 31, 2015, the Federal Court allowed an appeal from the prosecution and set aside the Court of Appeal’s ruling and found Sirul Azhar and Azilah guilty, and handed them the death sentence.
Sirul, however, fled to Australia before his conviction.
Yesterday, Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Datuk Liew Vui Keong had said that the cabinet had given the green light for the death penalty to be abolished.
He had said that the amendments to the existing laws imposing the death penalty as a capital punishment would be tabled in the next Dewan Rakyat sitting, which commences on Oct 15.
He had also said that the necessary paperwork to abolish the death penalty, which is now in its the final stages, had received the go ahead from the Attorney General Chambers to be tabled in Parliament.
Ramkarpal, in welcoming Liew’s announcement, said the death penalty had never been proven to be an effective deterrent.
“When debating the bill in Parliament, which allowed a court to consider a sentence other than death in capital punishment cases in certain instances during the Barisan Nasional administration, I proposed that provision be introduced in the said new legislation to allow a court to review each death row case with a view to imposing an appropriate sentence on the offender on a case by case basis.
“It is necessary for the court to be given such a discretion as certain cases are more deserving of a harsher penalty compared to others.
For instance, a person convicted to death for trafficking in a small amount of dangerous drugs ought not be given a lengthy prison sentence compared to a person convicted of murder.
“As such, it is hoped all laws which carry the mandatory death penalty be amended not only to abolish the same but also to include provision therein which gives the court the power to review the death sentence on those who are on death row on a case by case basis,” added the DAP national legal bureau chairman.