Report on the Launch of the Malaysian Bar Council’s MyConstitution Campaign for the Federal Territory of Kuala Lumpur
The Launch of the Malaysian Bar Council’s MyConstitution Campaign for the Federal Territory of Kuala Lumpur was held on 16 February 2011 at HELP University College. Close to 150 enthusiastic students were present at the launch.
The emcee for the launch was Ravin Singh, the Chairperson of the Bar Council Legal Aid Centre, Kuala Lumpur. The launch was officiated by Anand Ponnudurai the Chairman of the Kuala Lumpur Bar Committee with a welcoming speech and was followed by Mr Lua Bo Feng, the Constitutional and Administrative Law lecturer from the University College who gave a speech on behalf of HELP.
The Deputy Chairperson’s of the Bar Council Constitutional Law Committee, Maha Balakrishnan and Syahredzan Johan then gave an introduction of the Campaign and explained their aims and vision for the Campaign. The launch ended with a viewing of 8 Rakyat Service Advertisements and a question and answer session lead by Maha and Syah. Copies of the Rakyat Guides and various other merchandise were sold outside the Auditorium after the launch.
The MyConstitution Campaign was started off by the the Bar Council’s Constitutional Law Committee in 2009. The inaugural launch of the Campaign was held on 13 November 2009 and it was officiated by Datuk Liew Vui Keong, Deputy Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department.
Throughout the Campaign’s journey, various State Governments across the country have hosted and launched State-level phases of the Campaign such as Sarawak, Sabah, Kedah and Selangor.
The Campaign seeks to simplify key aspects of the Federal Constitution for The Malaysian public through a series of 9 booklets known as the The Rakyat Guides and public service advertisements also known as the Rakyat Service Advertisements’. To date, 8 booklets and advertisements have been published and the 9th is on the way. The titles of the booklets are:
1. What is the Federal Constitution?
2. Constitutional Institutions and Separation of Powers
3. Federal – State Relations
4. Parliament
5. The Executive
6. The Judiciary
7. Sabah & Sarawak
8. Fundamental Liberties and Citizenship
9. Democracy and Elections
The vision and mission of the Campaign is to promote the concept of constitutionalism and rule of just law, raise awareness and educate the rakyat on the Federal Constitution, to document and respond to the constitutional issues that arise and to conduct research and advise the Bar Council on constitutional matters.
For more information on the Campaign, you can visit the following sites: