| Siti Kasim | |
| Known For: | Human rights activism |
| Birth Name: | Siti Zabedah Kasim |
| Birth Date: | 10 May 1963 |
| Birth Place: | Melaka, Malaysia |
| Occupation: | Lawyer |
| Children: | 1[1] |
| Party: | Independent |
Siti Kasim is a Malaysian human rights lawyer and activist. She came to national prominence with her work within the Human Rights Committee of the Malaysian Bar highlighting the issues being faced by the indigenous peoples of Malaysia. Her work has since grown to encompass defending the rights of other minority and marginalised communities of Malaysia, and championing the ideal of an inclusive and progressive Malaysian society.[2] She has spoken of the criticism and abuse directed at her due to her outspoken and unapologetic demeanour.[3]
Siti Kasim launched her political career at the 15th general elections of Malaysia as an independent candidate aligned with the Gerak Independent[4] movement.[5] Tracing the root of the malaise within the Malaysian political and social landscape to excessive intertwining of government and religious affairs, she made the separation of state and religion a key pillar of her campaign. She was contesting the parliamentary constituency of Batu against nine other candidates.[6] Siti gained only 653 or 0.75% of the votes, ranking 6th out of the nine candidates contesting the constituency, losing to Prabakaran Parameswaran who won with a majority of 22,241.
On 21 July 2023, a suspicious object was discovered on the rear tyre of Siti Kasim's Toyota Celica when she sent the car for servicing. Brickfields police chief Assistant Commissioner Amihizam Abdul Shukor confirmed that the object was an improvised explosive device and an investigation is under way.[7] [8]
| Candidate | Votes | Pct | Opponent(s) | Votes | Pct | Ballots cast | Majority | Turnout | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | P115 Batu, Kuala Lumpur | Siti Zabedah Kasim (IND) | 653 | 0.75% | (PKR) | 45,716 | 52.46% | 87,841 | 22,241 | 76.54% | |||
| bgcolor= | Azhar Yahya (PAS) | 23,475 | 26.94% | ||||||||||
| A. Kohilan Pillay (MIC) | 10,398 | 11.93% | |||||||||||
| Chua Tian Chang (IND) | 4,603 | 5.28% | |||||||||||
| Wan Azliana Wan Adnan (PEJUANG) | 849 | 0.97% | |||||||||||
| Nur Fathiah Syazwana Shaharuddin (IND) | 628 | 0.72% | |||||||||||
| Naganathan Pillai (WARISAN) | 525 | 0.66% | |||||||||||
| bgcolor= | Zulkifli Abdul Fadlan (PRM) | 137 | 0.16% | ||||||||||
| Too Cheng Huat @ Too Gao Lan (IND) | 112 | 0.13% | |||||||||||