Asian Journal of Law and Policy

Front Matter

Wed, 30 Jul 2025 00:00:00 +0800

Navigating the Legal Landscape: Short-Term Rental Accommodations in Malaysia and the Path Forward

Hua Siong Wong, Kwok Whee Chung — Wed, 30 Jul 2025 00:00:00 +0800

Short-Term Rental Accommodation (‘STRA’) encircling activities such as operating short-term rentals and listing owner-occupied accommodations on network media, for example, Airbnb, Agoda, iBilik and Booking.com have raised numerous legal concerns in Malaysia. These include licensing, business registration, security issues, and neighbourhood disturbances. Presently, there is a notable absence of devoted legislation addressing the control of STRA, particularly within the context of Airbnb in Malaysia. This study applies qualitative methods, primarily library research through document analysis, focusing on relevant legislation and case laws in Malaysia and some selected countries. It is imperative to advocate for the establishment of specific legislation to regulate STRA in Malaysia to ensure the protection and welfare of homeowners, tourists, and the public in general and subsequently to achieve Goal 11 of the United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goals (‘SDGs’), which is to make cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable.

An Economic Analysis of the Effectiveness of Relevant Market Delineation Methods in Abuse of Dominant Position Cases in India

Hiteshkumar Thakkar, Matteo Smacchi, Mansi Subramaniam — Wed, 30 Jul 2025 00:00:00 +0800

In antitrust legislation, determining the relevant market is fundamental and a major determinant of how abuse of dominant position cases are decided. In the Indian context, the Competition Act lists factors to determine the relevant market. However, the relevant market delineation involves a lot of subjectivity, resulting in arbitrary decision-making and several case laws being testaments to the same. Further, the increasing variety in online marketplaces, the emergence of new e-commerce business models, and contemporary determinants of the relevant market (such as network effects) have made the issue even more complex and subjective. The paper argues that the mechanism adopted to delineate the relevant market is highly subjective and aims to highlight the issues associated with delineating abuse of dominant position cases in India. The approaches to determining the relevant market used in the contemporary Competition Commission of India order illustrate the challenges associated with these tests. It aims to propose an alternative to the current approaches, to reduce the arbitrariness and disparity in the adjudication of similar matters. The paper seeks to address whether the current method(s) of identifying the relevant market in abuse of dominant position cases are effective.

Abstention Obligation Under the UN Charter in the Light of the Subsequent Practice of the Permanent Members

Mei Yee Kang — Wed, 30 Jul 2025 00:00:00 +0800

A permanent member of the Security Council derives its veto power from Article 27(3) of the Charter of the United Nations. The proviso of Article 27(3), however, provides that when the Security Council is considering a non-procedural resolution under Chapter VI and Article 52(3) of the Charter, a party to the dispute to which the resolution relates shall not vote. It is also known as the obligatory abstention rule. The abstention obligation seems clear, but the practice of the obligation is not as straightforward. Some scholars argue against the abstention obligation because it has not been invoked for decades. On the other hand, some argue that treaty obligations cannot be modified or amended by subsequent practice. This paper argues that the abstention obligation under Article 27(3) cannot be amended by the subsequent practice of the Security Council, and it proposes that the General Assembly make an application to the International Court of Justice (ICJ) for an authoritative pronouncement in this regard.

The Role of Royal Pardon in Malaysia: An Analysis and a Way Forward

Hui Yai Loh, Hafidz Hakimi Haron — Wed, 30 Jul 2025 00:00:00 +0800

Royal Pardon is one of the prerogative rights of the King, Yang Di-Pertuan Agong in Malaysia. The granting of a royal pardon is sacred, as it will significantly shorten the punishment an offender deserves. The legal issues that arise are whether the advice of the Pardons Board is binding and whether the decision to grant a pardon will be judicially reviewed. An analysis was done about the rejection and granting of a royal pardon to Anwar Ibrahim, and also the pardon that was granted to Najib Razak recently. There are several weaknesses in Malaysia’s royal pardon system, and recommendations are provided by comparing it with those of Australia and Thailand. The problem is that there is a lack of clarity about Malaysia’s current royal pardon system to ensure justice is served. The research objectives are to analyse the current royal pardon system in Malaysia based on decided and ongoing cases, especially on Anwar Ibrahim and Najib Razak’s pardon process, and compare the royal pardon system with Australia and Thailand to improve Malaysia's current royal pardon system. The research adopts doctrinal-based research and comparative analysis to fulfil the objectives of the research.