A FIERY debate has sparked nationwide ever since Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamed announced at the United Nations General Assembly last September that Malaysia would accede to the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination (ICERD) – one of the six international human rights instruments to which we are not yet a party.

Many fear its implications on our laws and policies. Some initiated a petition against ICERD. Some have even gone to the streets to oppose it. This led to the government retracting its decision to ratify the international treaty on Friday.