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responsibility to respect human rights as outlined under Principle 12 of the
UNGP on Business and Human Rights. While the Commission commends
BNM’s efforts in conducting educational programmes on CRPD to FSPs, the
Commission also recommends that a procedural guideline for banking
services to visually impaired persons be drafted with the consultation of
disabled persons’ associations, in line with Article 5 of CRPD on equality and
non-discrimination. In this regard, the Commission will take the opportunity
provided by its engagement on the business and human rights agenda with
the Association of Banks in Malaysia (ABM) and Life Insurance Association in
Malaysia (LIAM) to promote the rights of persons with disabilities.
Apart from that, the Commission also received complaints on the denial
of a hearing impaired person’s right to bring an interpreter during a driving
test; the termination of teaching services on the basis of mental illness; and
the alleged discriminatory transfer of civil servants on the basis of race and
gender.
With regard to the complaints, the Commission has obtained feedback
on the respective cases and/or highlighted the issues to the relevant
agency and/or Ministry. The Commission appreciates the feedback to the
complaints provided by the respective agencies and Ministries, which in
some cases had been given quite quickly. Nonetheless, the Commission is
still awaiting data on the disciplinary action taken against teachers under
Rule 21(1) of the Public Officers (Conduct and Discipline) Regulations 1993,
which it had requested from the MOE last year. In the Government feedback
to the Commission’s Annual Report 2015, it was mentioned that the Ministry
was taking the necessary action with regard to the Commission’s request.
However, at the time of writing, that information has yet to be provided to
the Commission.
(e)
Torture, and Cruel and Degrading Treatment in Detention
Article 5 of UDHR guarantees that no one shall be subjected to torture or
to cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment. During the year, 36 complaints
were lodged with the Commission on the violation of that Article. The
Commission highlights here two complaints and the Commission’s inquiry
thereto:
i)
On 28 October 2015, the family of Kamal Hisham Ja’afar, a remand
inmate at Ayer Molek Remand Prison, Johor Bahru, lodged a
complaint regarding alleged ill-treatment during his detention at the
Johor Bahru Utara Special Branch lock-up. The Commission visited him
at the Prison on 25 November 2015 during which he confided, among
others things, that he was left with his underpants in the lock-up and
was only given a dirty and smelly thick blanket after he requested to
perform his prayers; no drinking water was provided to him, forcing
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