The Malaysian Bar has called on the government to immediately withdraw Malaysia’s remaining reservations to the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC), warning that continued exemptions undermine the country’s commitment to protecting children’s rights.
In a statement issued in conjunction with the “Legal Symposium on Children’s Rights to Access to Justice and Effective Remedies” on 10 June 2026, Malaysian Bar President Anand Raj said Malaysia’s obligations under the UNCRC remain incomplete due to five longstanding reservations involving key child rights provisions.
Malaysia acceded to the UNCRC on 17 February 1995 but continues to maintain reservations to Articles 2, 7, 14, 28(1)(a) and 37, which cover protections against discrimination, birth registration and nationality, freedom of thought and religion, access to free primary education, and protection from torture and arbitrary deprivation of liberty.
The Malaysian Bar said these reservations “have no place among civilised nations” and argued that maintaining them conflicts with the principles of international law.
It cited Article 19(c) of the Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties, which prohibits countries from maintaining reservations that are incompatible with the purpose and objectives of a treaty.
The organisation also highlighted recommendations from the 2026 Concluding Observations by the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child, urging Malaysia to introduce stronger child protection measures.
Among the recommendations are establishing a unified child protection framework, creating a National Action Plan to address childhood statelessness, improving child-friendly complaint mechanisms, ensuring independent age verification before prosecution, and raising the minimum age of criminal responsibility from 10 to at least 14 years old.
The Malaysian Bar also called for an end to child immigration detention, indefinite detention of children, child marriage and forced medical procedures involving children.
It said children should be treated as victims of hardship rather than offenders, particularly in cases involving street children and undocumented minors.
The statement pointed to the case of Minara Bibi Nur Boshor v Pendakwa Raya as an example of systemic challenges in protecting vulnerable children.
In the case, a Rohingya child from Myanmar was initially treated as an adult and detained after being charged under immigration laws. A later dental assessment confirmed she was between 15 and 16 years old, while the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) recognised her as a person requiring international protection.
The Malaysian Bar said the case highlighted the need for immediate age verification safeguards to prevent children from being processed under adult systems.
The organisation also referred to findings from the Sabah Child Wellbeing Index, which showed significant gaps in children’s access to safe environments, healthcare and education, particularly among undocumented and stateless children.
According to the statement, only 6.1% of children surveyed met the basic threshold for living in a safe and harmonious environment, while vulnerable groups recorded significantly lower outcomes in health and learning indicators.
The Malaysian Bar also stressed the importance of empowering professionals involved in child protection.
It cited comments by Chief Children Commissioner of the Human Rights Commission of Malaysia (SUHAKAM), Dr Farah Nini Dusuki, who highlighted protections under Sections 26 and 123 of the Child Act 2001, which provide legal immunity for medical practitioners and social workers acting in good faith to protect children.
Meanwhile, SUHAKAM Commissioner Melissa Akhir said stronger child justice outcomes would require more legal practitioners to take up children’s rights cases and support strategic litigation efforts.
The Malaysian Bar said it remains committed to working with SUHAKAM and other stakeholders to strengthen access to justice for children.
“Malaysia has fallen far short of the mark in protecting child rights,” Anand said, calling on political parties and the government to establish a clear and transparent timeline to remove all remaining reservations to the UNCRC.
