Proposal for Malaysian lawyers to adopt and implement business and human rights principles
Edmund Bon and Jacqueline Albert
March 15, 2023
We hope all lawyers will support the motion on business and human rights.
We hope all lawyers will support the motion on business and human rights.
Free Malaysia Today | At the National Peace Conference organised by Iman Research, lawyer Edmund Bon said there was a need to recast the view of conflict to include “structural and cultural violence”, which exists when social structures prevent people from meeting basic needs, or when cultural perceptions and attributes are used to justify or legitimise violence.
Slowly but surely, increased regulatory standards for due diligence, transparency in supply chains and ESG-BHR reporting will hit the operations of Malaysian companies doing business overseas.
“We wanted everyone to write, and we would encourage them to write for us. LoyarBurok was the legal platform to write for at that time. It steadily gained popularity, and young people thought it was hip, especially as the name was anti-establishment and tongue-in-cheek,” Edmund writes.
South China Morning Post | Scams reel people in with promises of high-paying jobs overseas which are online cons, targeting victims with fake investment opportunities or romance. Campaigners in Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia lodged a complaint with the AICHR, “as no nation can solve the issue alone”. However, Edmund Bon explained that the Commission does not have the powers to enforce compliance.
Can ESG achieve what it is framed to do, which is to sustain us on this planet in a just manner?
“Team work is very good. The lawyers are very supportive, explain and advise on the legal point of view of each case.”
Edmund is “knowledgeable, meticulous, experienced, confident, responsive, has great communication skills, and…a great service provider”.
Friedrich Naumann Foundation for Freedom | “I spoke to clients, including operations managers and sustainability officers. Many of them felt that they wanted to comply with business and human rights commitments, but did not know how to,” said Edmund Bon. In 2020, he had the idea to put together a “GuideKit for SMEs on Human Rights Compliance” and asked experts to contribute.
RWI has organised the Blended Learning Course on Human Rights and the Environment/Climate Change (BLC) for the past three years. AmerBON hosted the Malaysian workshop this year, in collaboration with the Malaysian Judiciary and SUHAKAM.
Substantive reforms to introduce more effective legal measures for our criminal justice system is sorely needed. The right to a fair trial demands it. The Bar Council should spearhead the reform advocacy.
The Edge Markets | SMEs, the backbone of supply chains, are at risk of losing out if they don’t change their business approach with respect to the environment and labour. Edmund Bon and other human rights experts sought to translate the corporate responsibility to protect human rights and the environment into tangible and simple tools for SMEs.
The Edge Markets | Counsel Edmund Bon, representing former Repco Holdings Bhd Chairman Low Thiam Hock, said the defence witnesses had described averaging-in of Repco shares, not market manipulation as alleged by the prosecution, and there was no rebuttal by the prosecution. Yet the judge did not address this in his judgment. Edmund appeared with Joshua Tay, New Sin Yew, and Chan Yen Hui.
Malay Mail | The Court of Appeal dismissed the appeals by NGOs and others to refer constitutional questions on the validity of an Emergency proclamation to the Federal Court. Lawyers Edmund Bon Tai Soon, New Sin Yew, and Jacqueline Hannah Albert represented Bersih and the NGOs.
Free Malaysia Today | A three-member Court of Appeal bench said the High Court did not commit any appealable error to warrant an intervention, but ordered no costs as the issue was of public interest. The bench also dismissed a preliminary objection by federal counsel that any decision on constitutional reference applications before a High Court was not appealable. Edmund Bon represented the NGOs.
The Edge Markets | Lawyers Edmund Bon Tai Soon, Jacqueline Albert, and New Sin Yew represented Bersih 2.0 and other NGOs which were appealing against the High Court decision not to refer constitutional questions posed under section 84 of the Courts of Judicature Act to the Federal Court.
APR2P Centre | Edmund Bon and Emily Wana prepared a report for the APR2P Centre on the ASEAN response to the Rohingya crisis since 2017, including its internal dynamics, challenges, and constraints. The report also considered the impact of the Myanmar coup on ASEAN diplomacy and proposed several recommendations for ASEAN moving forward.
The Friedrich Naumann Foundation for Freedom Southeast and East Asia | FNF and AmerBON published a GuideKit for small and medium enterprises, dealing with issues ranging from due diligence and internal assessment, to environmental risks and fair recruitment. The book contains essential and practical tools that SMEs can use to meet their BHR obligations under the UN Guiding Principles.
BFM | Around 100,000 people have signed an online petition requesting that former PM Najib Razak’s petition for pardon be rejected, while a group of UMNO supporters submitted a memorandum seeking a royal pardon. Edmund Bon explained what the process entails, the difference between a conditional and a free pardon, and flaws in the system such as the absence of a right of the prisoner to be heard.
Malaysiakini | Human rights lawyer Edmund Bon called for the pardons system for convicted prisoners to be reformed, drawing attention to the thousands of prisoners waiting for their pardons to be heard and re-heard. The Pardons Board comprises the AG, the federal territories minister, and three other members appointed by the YDPA, who presides over the board.
We hope all lawyers will support the motion on business and human rights.
Free Malaysia Today | At the National Peace Conference organised by Iman Research, lawyer Edmund Bon said there was a need to recast the view of conflict to include “structural and cultural violence”, which exists when social structures prevent people from meeting basic needs, or when cultural perceptions and attributes are used to justify or legitimise violence.
Slowly but surely, increased regulatory standards for due diligence, transparency in supply chains and ESG-BHR reporting will hit the operations of Malaysian companies doing business overseas.
“We wanted everyone to write, and we would encourage them to write for us. LoyarBurok was the legal platform to write for at that time. It steadily gained popularity, and young people thought it was hip, especially as the name was anti-establishment and tongue-in-cheek,” Edmund writes.
South China Morning Post | Scams reel people in with promises of high-paying jobs overseas which are online cons, targeting victims with fake investment opportunities or romance. Campaigners in Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia lodged a complaint with the AICHR, “as no nation can solve the issue alone”. However, Edmund Bon explained that the Commission does not have the powers to enforce compliance.
Can ESG achieve what it is framed to do, which is to sustain us on this planet in a just manner?
“Team work is very good. The lawyers are very supportive, explain and advise on the legal point of view of each case.”
Edmund is “knowledgeable, meticulous, experienced, confident, responsive, has great communication skills, and…a great service provider”.
Friedrich Naumann Foundation for Freedom | “I spoke to clients, including operations managers and sustainability officers. Many of them felt that they wanted to comply with business and human rights commitments, but did not know how to,” said Edmund Bon. In 2020, he had the idea to put together a “GuideKit for SMEs on Human Rights Compliance” and asked experts to contribute.
RWI has organised the Blended Learning Course on Human Rights and the Environment/Climate Change (BLC) for the past three years. AmerBON hosted the Malaysian workshop this year, in collaboration with the Malaysian Judiciary and SUHAKAM.
Substantive reforms to introduce more effective legal measures for our criminal justice system is sorely needed. The right to a fair trial demands it. The Bar Council should spearhead the reform advocacy.
The Edge Markets | SMEs, the backbone of supply chains, are at risk of losing out if they don’t change their business approach with respect to the environment and labour. Edmund Bon and other human rights experts sought to translate the corporate responsibility to protect human rights and the environment into tangible and simple tools for SMEs.
The Edge Markets | Counsel Edmund Bon, representing former Repco Holdings Bhd Chairman Low Thiam Hock, said the defence witnesses had described averaging-in of Repco shares, not market manipulation as alleged by the prosecution, and there was no rebuttal by the prosecution. Yet the judge did not address this in his judgment. Edmund appeared with Joshua Tay, New Sin Yew, and Chan Yen Hui.
Malay Mail | The Court of Appeal dismissed the appeals by NGOs and others to refer constitutional questions on the validity of an Emergency proclamation to the Federal Court. Lawyers Edmund Bon Tai Soon, New Sin Yew, and Jacqueline Hannah Albert represented Bersih and the NGOs.
Free Malaysia Today | A three-member Court of Appeal bench said the High Court did not commit any appealable error to warrant an intervention, but ordered no costs as the issue was of public interest. The bench also dismissed a preliminary objection by federal counsel that any decision on constitutional reference applications before a High Court was not appealable. Edmund Bon represented the NGOs.
The Edge Markets | Lawyers Edmund Bon Tai Soon, Jacqueline Albert, and New Sin Yew represented Bersih 2.0 and other NGOs which were appealing against the High Court decision not to refer constitutional questions posed under section 84 of the Courts of Judicature Act to the Federal Court.
APR2P Centre | Edmund Bon and Emily Wana prepared a report for the APR2P Centre on the ASEAN response to the Rohingya crisis since 2017, including its internal dynamics, challenges, and constraints. The report also considered the impact of the Myanmar coup on ASEAN diplomacy and proposed several recommendations for ASEAN moving forward.
The Friedrich Naumann Foundation for Freedom Southeast and East Asia | FNF and AmerBON published a GuideKit for small and medium enterprises, dealing with issues ranging from due diligence and internal assessment, to environmental risks and fair recruitment. The book contains essential and practical tools that SMEs can use to meet their BHR obligations under the UN Guiding Principles.
BFM | Around 100,000 people have signed an online petition requesting that former PM Najib Razak’s petition for pardon be rejected, while a group of UMNO supporters submitted a memorandum seeking a royal pardon. Edmund Bon explained what the process entails, the difference between a conditional and a free pardon, and flaws in the system such as the absence of a right of the prisoner to be heard.
Malaysiakini | Human rights lawyer Edmund Bon called for the pardons system for convicted prisoners to be reformed, drawing attention to the thousands of prisoners waiting for their pardons to be heard and re-heard. The Pardons Board comprises the AG, the federal territories minister, and three other members appointed by the YDPA, who presides over the board.