The Malaysian Bar has joined the call for fresh investigations on former police Special Action Unit (UTK) officer Azilah Hadri’s statutory declaration.

Bar president Abdul Fareed Abdul Gafoor (photo) said Azilah’s revelations at the current stage of proceedings are not only ‘damning and shocking’ with regards for the people involved, but also the perception of Malaysia’s justice system.

He noted that Azilah had already been convicted for the murder of the Mongolian national Altantuya Shaariibuu, and the Federal Court had upheld the conviction in 2015.

“The entire case thus far has been shrouded in mystery.

There are no limitations for criminal investigations. The truth, in this case, must emerge. There cannot be any cover-ups or attempts to shield or conceal any evidence or facts.

“All effort must be made to conduct a comprehensive investigation into all the facts and circumstances surrounding the crime and all such evidence must be tendered and tested in court.

“There should not be room for questions or doubts, as the standard of proof required of the prosecution is that they establish their case beyond reasonable doubt,” he said in a statement today.

Abdul Fareed said the fact that there is still room for doubt at the current stage of proceedings involving Azilah - and possibly most criminal cases - is the reason why the Bar is opposing the death penalty.

“Where the system is susceptible to flaws, it is wholly unacceptable for this margin of error to be paid for with the cost of human lives.

“The Malaysian Bar calls on all relevant authorities to do what is necessary to address these revelations,” he said.

Azilah and another UTK officer Sirul Azhar Umar were both convicted for the 2006 murder.

Azilah is currently applying for his murder conviction to be set aside and for a retrial of the Altantuya murder.

In his statutory declaration that forms part of his application to the Federal Court, Azilah admitted for the first time that he and Sirul had killed Altantuya.

He claimed that then deputy prime minister Najib Abdul Razak and the latter’s associate Abdul Razak Baginda had ordered them to do so.

The Federal Court is set to hear Azilah’s application on April 20 next year.

Najib, meanwhile, has dismissed the claims as ‘complete fabrication’.

Since then, many parties have demanded fresh inquiries into various aspects of how the Altantuya case was handled, including Najib himself.

Najib’s lawyer Muhammad Shafee Abdullah said his client wants fresh investigations to determine who had abetted Azilah’s supposed perjury.

DAP legal bureau chief Ramkarpal Singh, who also called for fresh investigations, said there must be prosecution against those implicated by Azilah if his allegations are true.

Kepong MP Lim Lip Eng demanded the role of the then attorney-general Abdul Gani Patail, the police officers who conducted the investigation, the DPPs who prosecuted and the judges who heard the case, to be scrutinised as well.

The activist Kua Kia Soong had gone further and demanded a royal commission of inquiry.