Chapter 1 – Report of the Policy, Law and Complaints Group (i) To introduce the UNGP to the relevant stakeholders related to business activities in Malaysia; (ii) To enhance understanding on how the UNGP can be implemented in practical terms; (iii) To identify, exchange, and promote good/best practises and lessons learned on the implementation of the UNGP; (iv) To provide an opportunity for various groups including the Government, GLCs, NGOs, and other CSOs to express their concerns and perspectives on issues related to business and human rights; and (v) To discuss possible collaborations with various stakeholders in promoting the agenda on business and human rights in Malaysia. The following issues and recommendations were highlighted by the participants of the RTDs: (i) Lack of Enforcement Powers While there are ample laws to protect human rights, they are ineffective due to the lack of enforcement powers. (ii) Gaps Between Legislation and Implementation of Court Decisions There are gaps between policies, laws, and enforcement, resulting in tremendous impacts at the local level especially among indigenous communities. There have been several cases involving Native Customary Rights that have been decided in favour of the indigenous communities. However, the relevant agencies appear to have disregarded the decisions and failed to make the necessary adjustments to current practices so as to reflect the court decisions. (iii) Access to Information and Consultation It is important for businesses to get proper and adequate consent from the local people upon the commencement of new development projects that might affect them. It is the responsibility of the businesses to ensure that the affected communities are included and involved in the consultation process and provided with access to relevant information. (iv) Licensing Procedures It is important to determine the status of a piece of land prior to the issuance of a licence so as to avoid the issuance of licences on NCR land. In cases where licences have been issued on NCR land, the ongoing projects should be suspended and proper consultations carried out to prove that the land is not NCR land. (v) Accessibility It is the duty of the State as well as its agencies to provide its people with access to 40 BOOK-ANR2016-01-latest.indb 40 08/04/2016 3:32 PM