NZ daily calls for rethink of diplomatic immunity following sex assault case
A New Zealand daily is calling for a revision of procedures governing diplomatic immunity in light of a Malaysian diplomat who fled the country after being implicated in a sexual assault case in Wellington.
Calling diplomatic immunity a "necessary evil", the New Zealand (NZ) Herald in an editorial said while the convention existed for the safety of diplomats, it ought not to shield the country he represented from the shame his actions had brought upon it.
Wisma Putra today confirmed that a Malaysian diplomat is a suspect in a New Zealand sex assault case, saying he will stand trial if there is assurance of justice.
Foreign Affairs Minister Datuk Seri Anifah Aman said yesterday that the accused was a Malaysian diplomat and that he had been recalled.
Anifah was also quoted as saying that Wisma Putra was not “protecting” him and he had asked that police investigations in New Zealand be allowed to continue in the interest of justice.
The diplomat, said to be in his 30s, was detained for having allegedly followed a 21-year-old woman to her house, then sexually assaulting her. He was also charged with burglary over the same incident.
But, the man “fled” New Zealand to return home when he invoked diplomatic immunity after his arrest on May 9.
The identity of the diplomat and his nationality has not been revealed by the media in New Zealand after a judge there issued a suppression order on his details.
The editorial stated that the fact the suspect was stationed at a high commission rather than an embassy suggests he represents a country of the Commonwealth, which makes it all the more disappointing that it did not submit him to New Zealand justice.
Commonwealth countries share a British common law inheritance, though perhaps not all treat intended rape as seriously as New Zealand does.
Labour's foreign affairs spokesman, David Shearer, urged the government to make sure the case was not swept under that country's carpet.
If it is, the best New Zealand can do is ensure that the fellow will be arrested should he ever return to this country without diplomatic immunity.
The NZ Herald also cited two instances where diplomats in New Zealand involved in criminal incidents were named.
“In 1997, an 18-year-old Lower Hutt woman was allegedly sexually assaulted by a Colombian ambassador while she was at a local cinema. He had diplomatic immunity and resigned but was not prosecuted.
“In 2000, a Wellington court needed a waiver of immunity to prosecute the partner of an Australian diplomat for injuring with a knife,” it said.
The daily added that naming the perpetrator was the least that should be done if diplomats cannot be held to account for offences against the citizens and law of their host country.
“This is a case where the identity of the victim might override disclosure of the accused's name but the country he has disgraced ought to be known. It could have waived his immunity and recovered some respect,” it said. – July 1, 2014.
