Malaysia Prepares To Strip Sultans Of Their Immunity
International Herald Tribune
December 15, 1992
Michael Richardson 

The government of Malaysia, long a staunch supporter of the monarchy, will convene a special meeting of Parliament next month to strip the country's sultans of immunity from prosecution for any breaches of the law.

Officials said the government was also likely to amend the Sedition Act, which forbids public criticism of the sultans.

The decision to curb the special status of the hereditary rulers of nine of Malaysia's 13 states comes after widespread indignation over reports of a recent assault by Mahmood Iskandar, the sultan of Johore, against a hockey coach.

The police said Monday that Tengku Majid Idris Iskandar, the younger son of the Johore ruler, was put on the wanted list because he could not be found after a warrant for his arrest for attacking an opponent in a hockey match was issued recently.

The government's determination to make the sultans more accountable reflects an underlying conflict between the country's growing middle class, whose representatives now dominate politics, and some members of the Malay royal families.

This conflict over power and business opportunities has grown sharper in recent years as surging economic growth in Malaysia created an increasingly influential and assertive group of commoners in government, business and the professions. They resent what they regard as unwarranted political interference and unfair commercial competition from those with royal connections.

Prime Minister Mahathir bin Mohamad said Saturday that although the governing National Front coalition of political parties supported the system of constitutional monarchy, it had decided that rulers who committed criminal offenses should not be above the law.

Analysts said, however, that the government's move against the sultans could create a constitutional crisis if, as appeared likely, any of the sultans objected.

The National Front, which contains political parties representing both majority Malays and minority Chinese and Indians, has the necessary two-thirds majority of seats in Parliament to amend the law.

But any amendment to the constitution affecting the sultans must have the consent of the Council of Rulers before it can become law.

Under the country's system of rotating monarchy, the council chooses Malaysia's king from among the sultans. The king holds office for five years, acting as a constitutional monarch.

Most of the friction between royal families and commoners in recent years has occurred at state level, where the sultans are supposed to be ceremonial rulers and guardians of Islam, the country's official religion, leaving real power in the hands of politicians.

In July, three sultans, including the rulers of Johore and Kelantan, refused to sign a voluntary code of conduct drawn up by the government after Sultan Ismail Petra of Kelantan refused to pay more than $800,000 in import tax to the federal government for a Lamborghini Diablo sports car that he had imported.

The issue of abuse of power by some members of the royal families was brought sharply into focus after Douglas Gomez, a Johore hockey coach, told the police that he had been summoned to the palace last month and beaten up by Sultan Mahmood.

Malaysian officials said Mr. Gomez had earlier criticized an instruction from the sultan ordering the withdrawal of Mr. Gomez's hockey team from a national tournament after a ban on Tengku Majid Iskandar.

The prince was recently suspended from playing in hockey tournaments for five years after the Malaysian Hockey Federation found him guilty of assaulting an opposing goalkeeper after Johore lost a match in July.

A magistrates court in Johore on Saturday issued a warrant for the arrest of the prince.

In a debate Thursday, the 96 members who were present in Parliament, including opposition members, unanimously approved a motion censuring Sultan Mahmood for assaulting Mr. Gomez.

Shahidan Kassim, a Malay legislator of the National Front, said the sultan and his elder son had been implicated in 23 criminal acts in the last two decades, including rape, assault and manslaughter.

Affifuddin Omar, another Malay legislator in the Front, said it was time to end the "false sense of political power" associated with the sultans. Hereditary rulers must realize that they did not own the country but were "placed on their thrones by the people," he added.

Mr. Mahathir said Malaysians were "fully united" in their stand that the sultans should not interfere in the country's administration.

Copyright © 2006 The International Herald Tribune