Najib's Case Brought Many First for Malaysia, Well Worth Reflecting on the Eve of Merdeka #MalaysiaKita

By Mihar Dias

Yes for once we have quite a few first(s) to show the world, showcased unfortunately by the trials and conviction of a former prime minister which in itself is also a number one historic event, that is hitherto unseen in the history of our 65 year old country as an independent nation.

For the first time we have a woman as Chief Justice in a fraternity that was once exclusively dominated by men.

During the early days of independence there were women in the profession but the number was relatively small.

One of the most respected that I had the honour of meeting in New York once, was the late P.G. Lim when she was our Deputy Permanent Representative to the United Nations with the rank of ambassador.

She was one of the first female lawyers to practice in Malaysia then and was awarded the Malaysian Bar Lifetime Achievement Award in 2020.

Tan Sri PG Lim was also Malaysia's first female ambassador. She served as Malaysia's Ambassador to Yugoslavia, Austria, and the European Economic Community.

If she was still alive she would be really proud to see women represented on the Apex Court to be held in high esteem on equal footing with their male counterparts in the profession.

For the first time we have a Chinese Female as a Federal Court Judge Datuk Mary Lim Thiam Suan and an Indian female, Datuk Nalini Pathmanathan as a Federal Court judge, both of whom sat with two other gentlemen alongside a female Chief Justice on the Apex Court recently and affirmed decisions of the High Court and the Court of Appeals on Najib the first former prime minister that is now serving a 12 year jail sentence.

For the first time these three women from all the major ethnic groups in Malaysia, sat on the Apex Court and put an end to one of the longest ever case in our history.

As you go about celebrating this Merdeka think about these first time happenings that symbolise the independence, the impartiality of our judiciary, maturity of our society in showing our faith in the ability of women to be able to make as fair a decision as any man could.

This puts to rest the condescending attitude amongst some males chauvinists about women's inability to make decisions about one of the most notorious "cash is king, bossku" and ended the political career of an enigma of Malaysia, Najib Razak.

Let's drink a toast to all our women folks on this Merdeka Day. More power to women!

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