UNCAT, as well as to learn from other jurisdictions and to gain support from various key stakeholders advocating for Malaysia’s accession to the convention. CH A PT E R 1 Among the key issues and recommendations derived from the programmes were: i. That the assumption that Islam and UNCAT are incompatible should not be an obstacle for Malaysia to ratify the convention and to advance the human rights agenda in the country. ii. That syariah law was not a hindrance to Malaysia’s accession to the UNCAT as the provisions of Syariah offences and punishment under Syariah Courts (Criminal Jurisdiction) 1965 (Amendment) 1984 and Syariah Criminal Procedure (Federal Territories) Act 1997 fell outside of the definition of “torture” under the UNCAT. iii. That the education and awareness of UNCAT among the Muslim community in Malaysia should be based on the fundamental belief that Islam forbids torture and cruelty. iv. That there should be regular dialogues with Malaysian religious scholars and academics to look into the compatibility of UNCAT with the Federal Constitution of Malaysia and the Islamic principles upheld by the Muslim community. v. That Malaysia should emulate the best practices of other Islamic countries like Tunisia and Qatar, which have replaced corporal punishment with other forms of punishment such as imprisonment for criminal offences. vi. That there needs to be a constructive discussion among members of the public on Malaysia’s accession to UNCAT despite their differing views with regard to the integration of universal values into a domestic context. It is vital for Malaysians to understand that the purpose of UNCAT is not to impose another set of values and culture with the aim of undermining existing religious beliefs and values in Malaysia. vii. That “prevention” is the key element under UNCAT, which seeks to prohibit torture and ill-treatment and to uphold the State party’s accountability in undertaking effective measures as underlined in the convention. viii. That each State Party is allowed to make declarations and reservations to certain articles in UNCAT. However, this must be done based on solid justification so as not to undermine the objective of the convention. ix. That the implementation of caning in schools contradicts Article 16 of UNCAT which stipulates the obligation of the State Party to develop interventions to prevent cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment. There is a need for educators to review their disciplinary methods so as to respect the human dignity of all children in meeting the objectives of education. x. That human rights should be taught to school children - as is implemented in Indonesia through a school programme called “Student Community of Human Rights” - to tackle the problem of bullying as well as through the introduction of a subject on respecting the rights of the people in the school curriculum. SUHAKAM ANNUAL REPORT 2018 35