SENATOR YUSMADI YUSOFF

PERSONAL Age: 46 Date of Birth: 12th Oct 1974 Place of Birth: , Citizenship:

CONTACT (Residence) No. 30, Jalan 2/132, Taman Gasing Indah, 59200 , Malaysia Mobile +6012 3093469 E-mail: [email protected]

(Office) Suite 5-05-03A VSQ@PJ City Centre Jalan Utara, Petaling Jaya , Malaysia Tel +603 7931 6187 Fax +603 77842684

SOCIAL MEDIA @yusmadi Yusmadi Yusoff @yusmadi.yusoff Yusmadi Yusoff yusmadi.my fny.my rights.com.my https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yusmadi_Yusoff

SUMMARY Yusmadi is a lawyer and former Member of Parliament (2008-2013). He is a Partner at Fahda Nur & Yusmadi and the founding Chairman of RIGHTS Foundation (RIGHTS), an independent think tank and charity organisation focusing on regional governance, human rights and social justice initiatives. He is a prominent member of the Malaysian legal community with a wealth of experience in law, politics, human rights and international affairs. Called to the Malaysian Bar in 1999, Yusmadi was trained and practiced as a lawyer in a few of Malaysia’s top law firms before joining Fahda Nur & Yusmadi as a partner. As a lawyer, Yusmadi was involved in many high profile cases such as Al Maunah, the first case on waging war against YDP Agong, counsel in the Royal Commission Enquiry on VK Lingam Tape, Sharifah Aini vs Siti Nurhaliza, Dato Seri Koh Kim Teck murder case, defending squatters from forced evictions, illegal assembly cases etc. Yusmadi is also active in defending cases assigned by YBGK (National Legal Aid Foundation).

He is also an active member of the international legal community, regularly invited as speaker by international governments to forums such as the Doha Forum (Qatar), World Forum for Democracy (Strasbourg), Forum 2000 (Prague) and Tamil Eelam Human Rights Protection Conference (Chennai). He was appointed by the Secretary General of Commonwealth to be part of the Commonwealth Election Observation Team for Maldives Presidential Election in 2013. Yusmadi was also one of the Election Observers at and during the US Mid Term Election in 2007 organised by the Center for Democracy & Election Management, American University, Washington D.C. In the 12th Malaysian General Election, Yusmadi was elected as a Member of for Balik Pulau, Pulau Pinang and was appointed by DYMM Yang Di Pertuan Agong (the King of Malaysia) as the Special Parliamentary Committee for Anti Corruption under the Malaysia Anti Corruption Commission. As a Member of Parliament, he was entrusted to be the spokesperson for matters pertaining to education and international affairs. He has been appointed to many inter-parliamentarian committees including the Treasur- er for Inter- Parliamentary Union (IPU Malaysia), Secretary for ASEAN Inter Parliamentary Myanmar Caucus (AIPMC), the Malaysia-European Union Caucus, the Malaysia-South Korea Caucus and Malaysia-Indonesia Caucus. In August 2018, Yusmadi was appointed the Honourable Senator of the Upper House () of Malaysia.

His human rights activism at the local and international level was duly recognized when he was selected for the International Visitors Leadership Program (IVLP) for Multi Regional Human Rights Advocacy Programme in the US in 2004. In 2006 he was awarded the Hubert H. Humphrey Fellowship (Law & Human Rights) by the Fulbright Commission hosted by American University Washington College of Law, Washington D.C., a highly prestigious scholarship.

Yusmadi is a prolific writer and his views on law and politics are sought after by both printed and electronic media in Malaysia. He was a columnist in a leading newspaper and a regular invited panellist in Malaysia satellite TV channel on law, politics and international affairs particularly regarding US Foreign policies and Southeast Asian affairs.

In 2018 Yusmadi was invited by Stephen A. Schwarzman, Chairman, CEO and Co-Founder of Blackstone (world biggest private equity firm based in New York) to serve as Interviewer for Schwarzman Scholars. The program is modeled after the Rhodes Scholarship; however, instead of sending exceptional graduate students to Oxford, our Scholars will study together in a cohort program for one year Master's Degree in Global Affairs at Tsinghua University, one of the top academic institutions in China. More on the program is available at: www.schwarzmanscholars.org.

Yusmadi was appointed as Adjunct Professor at ISTAC IIUM (International Institute of Islamic Thought and Civilization) with effect from 1 March 2019 on Pro bono basis. Areas of research are Islam, democracy and political ethics.

In October 2019, Senator Yusmadi was selected by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of as the first Lee Kuan Yew Senior Fellow in Public Service at Lee Kuan School of Public Policy, National University of Singapore.

In December 2019, Senator Yusmadi Yusoff was unanimously elected as the first Dewan Negara Caucus Chairman during its first meeting today.

Yusmadi graduated with an LL.B (Hons) from International Islamic University Malaysia where he has studied both Common Law and Islamic Law. He also graduated with Master of Law (LL.M) in International Legal Studies with specialization in Human Rights protection from American University, Washington College of Law in Washington D.C. In Summer 2008, Yusmadi was selected as Draper Hills Democracy & Development Fellow by the Center on Democracy, Development & the Rule of Law (CDDRL), at Palo Alto, .

He has completed his Secondary Education at Islamic School Al-Mashoor (L), Penang and Sultan Alam Shah Islamic College, Klang (KISAS), Selangor.

EXPERTISE Law, Human Rights, Democracy, Development, Public Policy and International Affairs

CURRENT PROFESSIONAL POSITIONS Senior Partner, Fahda Nur & Yusmadi – Advocates, Solicitors & Syariah counsel (2007 – present) A boutique law firm specialising in civil, commercial law, criminal defence, human rights, public interest and Islamic law cases.

Founder & Chairman, RIGHTS Foundation (2008 – present) RIGHTS is an independent private think tank and charity organization stands for Regional Initiatives for Governance, Human Rights & Social Justice. ACADEMIC QUALIFICATIONS Lee Kuan Yew Senior Fellow in Public Service at Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy, Natinal University of Singapore (2019)

Draper Hills Democracy & Development Fellow (Center for Democracy, Development & the Rule of Law) Stanford University, Palo Alto, California (2008)

American University Washington College of Law, Washington D.C LL.M International Legal Studies (Human Rights), Dissertation: ASEAN Human Rights Mechanism & Its Challenges

International Islamic University Malaysia LL.B (Hons), Law, 1994 – 1998 - Activities and Societies: Vice president of Law Society Association, Asean Law Students' Association (ALSA), founding committee the first Malaysia Law Students Association (MALSA) - Attending Malaysia-Indonesia Legal Integration Visit at University of Indonesia, Jakarta (law students exchange programme) 1995

Matriculation Centre International Islamic University Malaysia Certificate, Law, 1993 - 1994 Professional qualification Admitted to the High Court of Malaya 1999 (Malaysian Bar)

PROFESSIONAL QUALIFICATION Admitted to the High Court of Malaya 1999 (Malaysian Bar)

HONOURS AND AWARDS Hubert H. Humphrey Fellow (Law & Human Rights) by the Fulbright Commission of the United States of America (2007-2008)

International Visitors Leadership Program (IVLP) on Regional Human Rights Advocacy by the United States Department of State (March 8, 2004)

POSTGRADUATE EDUCATION Academy on Human Rights and Humanitarian Law Summer Program 2007 Certificate, International Human Rights, 2007 - 2007 Activities and Societies: A Summer Human Rights Academy organized by American University Washington College of Law and the Netherlands Institute of Human Rights on June 15, 2007 in Washington D.C. Successfully completed courses on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, International Justice for Human Rights Violations, Rights to Political Participation and United Nations Human Rights System

Rollins School of Public Health at Emory University Certificate, Global Development and Social Justice, 2007 - 2007 Activities and Societies: Participated in the Atlanta Enhancement Workshop on Global Development and Social Justice on March 18-23, 2007

The United States Institute of Peace, Washington D.C. Certificate, Peace Studies, 2007 - 2007 Activities and Societies: Participated in the Collaborative Peacemaking Workshop organised by the United States Institute of Peace on May 11, 2007 in Washington D.C. PUBLIC SERVICE EXPERIENCE Senator of the Upper House (Dewan Negara) of Malaysia. August 2018-present

Committee Chairman, Senate Reform Working Committee

Member of Parliament, Malaysia March 2008 – May 2015 Elected as Member of Parliament on 8th March 2008 representing the constituency of Balik Pulau (P.053) in Penang and held a few positions in Inter-Parliamentarians organizations and caucuses such as:-

Special Parliamentary Committee on Anti-Corruption appointed by YDP Agong (the King) of Malaysia under Malaysia Anti Corruption Commission Act 2009

Member of Commonwealth Election Observer Team for Maldives Presidential Election 2012

Member of ‘Middle East Economic Enrichment’ Doha Forum sponsored by UCLA and Qatar Government

Treasurer, Inter-Parliamentary Union, Malaysia; - Part of IPU Malaysia delegates to ICC on Rome Statute i.e. admission of Malaysia as International Criminal Court member - Part of delegates to Indonesia on illegal migrant workers and border security issues Secretary of ASEAN Inter-Parliamentarians Myanmar Caucus (Malaysia);Committee Member of Malaysia-EU Parliamentarians Caucus; Committee Member of Malaysia-South Korea Parliamentarians Caucus; Committee Member of Asian Forum of Parliamentarians for Population and Development; Committee Member of Parliamentary Integrity & Independence of Judiciary Caucus Represented Malaysian Parlia- ment to the UN General Assembly meeting in New York (2011), Asia Pacific Parliamentarians Forum in Mongolia (2010), World e-Parliament (Rome)

Founder & Chairman, Akademi Rakyat, Balik Pulau (2008-present) Learning Centre for the poor in Balik Pulau Founder & Chairman, Koperasi Pembangunan Balik Pulau Berhad

Fellow at Institute for Policy Research (IKD) (2006 – 2008) The Institute for Policy Research (IKD) was formed by in 1985, as a non-profit, non-governmental organization dedicated to the cause of cultural revivalism, the construction of a civil society and the promotion of interaction among Southeast Asian countries, between the region and the rest of the world. It provides a forum for scholars, policy makers and others to interact, organize conferences, seminars, conduct research and training and play advocacy roles on vital current issues. Responsible for the implementation of Asian Renaissance: Capacity Building for Future Leaders in Southeast Asia sponsored by Sasakawa Peace Foundation of Japan

SPEAKING ENGAGEMENT International Women Day Forum, #PledgeForParity Campaign in conjunction with International Women Day (2016) ‘Female Economy’, Selangor Women Leadership Convention (Selangor) (2015) Topics ‘Bridging Human Rights and Conflict Resolution Approach in past Human Rights Violations in Malaysia and Indonesia’, Southeast Human Rights Conference (Kuala Lumpur) (2015) World Forum for Democracy (Strasbourg) (2012) Media & Democracy - Forum200 (Prague) (2012) Tamil Eelam Human Rights Protection Conference (Chennai) (2012) Keynote Address, Asia Pacific EducationUSA (Kuala Lumpur) (2011) Topics ‘The Rights of Mobile Citizen’, Asia Pacific HIV/AIDS Conference (Bali) Asian Renaissance: Capacity Building for Southeast Asia Young Leaders (Manila, Jakarta, Phnom Penh) Women Critical Legal Issues in Global Leadership Forum (Santa Cruz, California) (2006) PUBLICATION Book entitled Lelaki Di Sebalik Pulau published by Dubook Press (2015) In Search of Common Ground: A Journey of Young Muslim Lawyer Journal of Global Network, American University Washington College of Law, Washington D.C (2006)

FILM/DOCUMENTARY Special guest in A Whisper To A Roar (2009) a collaborative project between Stanford University and Prince Hecham Maulay Foundation and produced/directed by Ben Moses an Emmy Award winning creator of ‘Good Morning, Vietnam’ Main feature actor in ‘A Neighbouring Country Story’ (Phoenix Channel, Hong Kong) (2004)

MEDIUM OF INSTRUCTIONS English (second language) Bahasa Malaysia/Indonesia (native) Arabic (working knowledge)