On 28 November 2017, the 31st Sultan Azlan Shah Law Lecture was held at the Grand Ballroom of the St. Regis Hotel, Kuala Lumpur. The lecture was organised by the Sultan Azlan Shah Foundation and the University of Malaya. It was an honour to have an address given by the highly-esteemed guest speaker, The Right Honourable, The Lord Thomas of Cwmgiedd, the Lord Chief Justice of England and Wales, on the topic of “The Rule of Law, the Executive and the Judiciary” in the presence of DYMM Paduka Seri Sultan Perak Darul Ridzuan, Sultan Nazrin Shah, and DYMM Raja Permaisuri Perak Darul Ridzuan, Tuanku Zara Salim.

DYMM Paduka Seri Sultan Perak Darul Ridzuan, Sultan Nazrin Shah, The Right Honourable Lord Thomas of Cwmgiedd, the Lord Chief Justice of England and Wales, and Datuk Ir. (Dr.) Abdul Rahim Hashim, the Vice-Chancellor of the University of Malaya (UM) before the lecture session

Lord Thomas began the lecture by explaining the definition of the rule of law before moving on to discuss the interdependence of the three main subjects of the topic which are the rule of law, the executive, and the judiciary.

Lord Thomas opined that there are two crucial issues to be considered in strengthening the rule of law and in ensuring proper relationship between the executive and the judiciary; first, the safeguard of the independence of the judiciary and second, the importance of strengthening the relationship between the two organs particularly the appreciation of their respective roles.

The venue for the 6th Constitutional Lecture, Tun Suffian Auditorium, The Faculty of Law, University of Malaya

Being a democratic country for almost 60 years, Malaysia aspires to be a leading state of progress and democracy in South East Asia. The Federal Constitution, the supreme law of the land, was meticulously drafted by our founding fathers to champion freedom of speech and expression without unreasonable limitations. However, Malaysians are in fact restricted by a plethora of limitations that infringe these freedom. Legislations enacted by the State limit expression to an unjustifiable length, such as detention without trial, arrest for making satire, to the extent that even the academicians are concerned with regards to exercising their academic freedom.