KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia still has no specific law for jail sentences to be served under house arrest, with the proposed legislation yet to be finalised, says Home Minister Datuk Seri Saifuddin Nasution Ismail.
"At present, there is no specific legal provision under the Home Ministry or the Malaysian Prisons Department that allows a prisoner to serve a custodial sentence at their own residence through a house arrest mechanism," he said in a written parliamentary reply on Tuesday (Oct 27).
Saifuddin Nasution said his ministry was drafting a House Arrest Bill focusing on remand detainees, which was now in the final stages of review, including by the Attorney General's Chambers (AGC).
Datuk Ngeh Koo Ham (PH-Beruas) wanted to know what legal provisions permitted prisoners to serve their jail sentences under house arrest.
Saifuddin Nasution explained that prisoners could still be considered for pardons, sentence reductions, commutations or deferments under Article 42 of the Federal Constitution.
"Such considerations were subject to the jurisdiction of the Pardons Board and the consent of the Yang di-Pertuan Agong, the respective state Rulers or Yang di-Pertua Negeri," he added.
He clarified that conditional pardons granted through the constitutional prerogative of mercy, upon the advice of the Pardons Board, must be distinguished from house arrest orders issued under specific legislation.
The distinction, he said, was important as conditional pardons and house arrest orders operate under separate legal frameworks.
Previously, Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (Law and Institutional Reform) Datuk Seri Azalina Othman Said said Section 3 of the Prisons Act 1995 empowered the Home Minister to designate a residence as a prison, allowing house arrest to be implemented without the need for new legislation. -THE STAR