SABAH OFFICE OVERVIEW The SUHAKAM Act envisages a society in which human rights are fully respected and protected, and enjoyed by all. In taking cognisance of this and the financial and human resources available for the year 2020, Sabah Office’s activities mainly focused on the following: a) Increasing public awareness of human rights - targeting political leaders, civil servants, grassroot community leaders such as district chiefs, native chiefs and village heads, students and the general public; b) Receiving and investigating public complaints of human rights infringements; c) Engaging with federal and state agencies, representatives of foreign governments, CSOs, etc. on the advancement and safeguard of human rights; and d) Participating in other activities related to human rights promotion and protection. The Sabah Office would like to acknowledge that we received good cooperation and assistance from the relevant federal government agencies, Sabah State Government and its agencies, CSOs and others. Sabah Office’s programmes received enthusiastic response from the target groups throughout the year, particularly from the rural communities. The programmes succeeded in raising awareness of human rights and the roles and functions of SUHAKAM. 1. AWARENESS PROGRAMMES In line with Section 4 (1) of the Human Rights Commission of Malaysia Act (Act 597), Sabah Office focused on awareness-raising. We organised ‘SUHAKAM Bersama Masyarakat’ (SBM - “Meet-the-People”) Programme on 5 February in Pitas District. This programme’s primary objectives were to 68 ANNUAL REPORT 2020