Pardon in Malaysia is provided under Article 42 of The Federal Constitution. Not all pardons are royal pardons, governor or Yang di-Pertuan Negeri have authority for crimes in their respective states except for laws regulating to Islamic religious affairs in the State of Malacca, Penang, Sabah or Sarawak or the Federal Territories of Kuala Lumpur and Labuan of which the power lies with The Yang di Pertuan Agong.
Article 42 says:-
(1) The Yang di-Pertuan Agong has power to grant pardons, reprieves and respites in respect of all offences which have been tried by court-martial and all offences committed in the Federal Territories of Kuala Lumpur and Labuan; and the Ruler or Yang di-Pertua Negeri of a State has power to grant pardons, reprieves and respites in respect of all other offences committed in his State.
(2) Subject to Clause (10), and without prejudice to any provision of federal or State law to remit, suspend or commute sentences for any offence shall be exercisable by the Yang di-Pertuan Agong if the sentence was passed by a court- martial or by a civil court exercising jurisdiction in the Federal Territories of Kuala Lumpur and Labuan and, in any other case, shall be exercisable by the Ruler or Yang di-Pertua Negeri of the State in which the offence was committed.
(3) Where an offence was committed wholly or partly outside the Federation or in more than one State or in circumstances which make it doubtful where it was committed, it shall be treated for the purposes of this Article as having been committed in the State in which it was tried. For the purpose of this Clause the Federal Territory of Kuala Lumpur or the Federal Territory of Labuan as the case may be, shall each be regarded as a State.
(4) The powers mentioned in this Article - (a) are, so far as they are exercisable by the Yang di-Pertuan Agong, among functions with respect to which federal law may make provision under Article 40 (3); (b) shall, so far as they are exercisable by the Ruler or Yang di-Pertuan Negeri of a State, be exercised on the advice of a Pardons Board constituted for that State in accordance with Clause (5).
(5) The Pardons Board constituted for each State shall consist of the Attorney General of the Federation, the Chief Minister of the State and not more than three other members, who shall be appointed by the Ruler or Yang di-Pertua Negeri; but the Attorney General may from time to time by instrument in writing delegate his functions as a member of the Board to any other person, and the Ruler or Yang di-Pertua Negeri may appoint any person to exercise temporarily the functions of any member of the Board appointed by him who is absent or unable to act.
(6) The members of a Pardons Board appointed by the Ruler or Yang Dipertua Negeri shall be appointed for a term of three years and shall be eligible for re- appointment, but may at any time resign from the Board.
(7) A member of the Legislative Assembly of a State or of the House of Representatives shall not be appointed by the Ruler or Yang Dipertua Negeri to be a member of a Pardons Board or to exercise temporarily the functions of such a member.
(8) The Pardons Board shall meet in the presence of the Ruler or Yang di-Pertua Negeri and he shall preside over it.
(9) Before tendering their advice on any matter a Pardons Board shall consider any written opinion which the Attorney General may have delivered thereon.
(10) Notwithstanding anything in this Article, the power to grant pardons, reprieves and respites in respect of, to remit, suspend or commute sentences imposed by any court established under any law regulating Islamic religious affairs in the State of Malacca, Penang, Sabah or Sarawak or the Federal Territories of Kuala Lumpur and Labuan shall be exercisable by the Yang di- Pertuan Agong as Head of the religion of Islam in the State.
(11) For the purpose of this Article, there shall be constituted a single Pardons Board for the Federal Territory of Kuala Lumpur and the Federal territory of Labuan and the provisions of Clauses (5), (6), (7), (8) and (9) shall apply mutatis mutandis to the Pardons Board under this Clause except that reference to "Ruler or Yang di-Pertua Negeri" shall be construed as reference to the Minister responsible for the Federal Territory of Kuala Lumpur and the Federal Territory of Labuan.
Note: The Latin term "mutatis mutandis" simply means "things having been changed that have to be changed"
Since it was first promulgated in 1957, there have been 61 amendments to the Federal Constitution, an average of roughly one amendement a year.
DOWNLOAD MALAYSIA'S FEDERAL CONSTITUTION
To Pardon Or Not To Pardon Part 1
To Pardon Or Not To Pardon Part 2
To Pardon Or Not To Pardon Part 4
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