Establishment

The Yayasan Tun Suffian or, in English, the Tun Suffian Foundation, was established by the execution of a Trust Deed and an Agreement pursuant to the Trust Deed on 11 June 2002 during a simple ceremony in the Chambers of the then Chief Justice Yang Amat Arif Tun Mohamed Dzaiddin who graciously agreed to be its Chairman. The following Statement was issued to the press immediately after the ceremony:

Chief Justice Tun Mohamed Dzaiddin heads an eleven-member Board of Trustees of the Yayasan Tun Suffian, established to perpetuate the good name of Tun Mohamed Suffian, the former Lord President of the Federal Court of Malaysia who died at the age of almost 83 at the home of his close friend Tunku Dato‘ Dr. Sofiah Jewa in Kampung Tunku, Petaling Jaya almost two years ago on 26 September 2000.

The other members of the Board are Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Datuk Seri Utama Dr. Rais Yatim, Tun Suffian‘s younger brother and engineer Tan Sri Talha Hashim, former Court of Appeal judge Dato’ Shaik Daud, Court of Appeal judge Dato K. C. Vohrah, Vice Chancellor of the University of Malaya Professor Dato’ Dr. Anuar Zaini Md. Zain, lawyers Dato’ Dr. Yaacob Hussain Merican and Encik Zaid Ibrahim, medical practitioner Dr Liew Yin Mei, chartered accountant Dato’ Ahmad Johan Raslan and Malayan Law Journal managing director Mr Michael John Evans. A Trust Deed and an Agreement supplemental to the Deed were executed in the Chambers of the Chief Justice this morning between Tunku Sofiah as founder of the Yayasan and the other Board members in the presence of Tan Sri Datuk Wira Dr. L.C. Vohrah, Judge Ad Litem of the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia. The Trustees shall be making an application to the Prime Minister for a Certificate of Registration of themselves as trustees of the Yayasan, as a corporate body, pursuant to section 4 of the Trustees (Incorporation) Act 1952. Once the Certificate is obtained the Yayasan shall be known as “Yayasan Tun Suffian Berdaftar”.

Board of Trustees l Message from the Founder



Principal Objectives of the Foundation:

1) To establish a Tun Suffian Chair on Constitutional Law at the University of Malaya;

2) To award a Tun Suffian Scholarship periodically for deserving Malaysian students to pursue undergraduate law studies at Tun Suffian's alma mater at Cambridge and thenceforth to be called to the bar at Middle Temple – the path the late Tun pursued in his law studies;

3) On an annual basis, but subject to availability of qualified applicants:

• To grant the Tun Suffian Cambridge Award to the most outstanding Malaysian student pursuing the Master's Programme in law at Cambridge;

• To award 4 scholarships to Malaysian students pursuing any Malaysian based LLB course recognised by the Malaysian Bar. Currently, these universities are Universiti Malaya, Universiti Teknologi Mara, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia and Universiti Islam Antarabangsa;

• To award 3 scholarships to outstanding students (not necessarily Malaysians) pursuing any Malaysian-based PhD degree course (not necessarily related to law) currently offered at Universiti Malaya, Universiti Teknologi Mara, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, Universiti Islam Antarabangsa, Universiti Sains Malaysia and Universiti Putra Malaysia.

• To award 4 post-medical bursaries to Malaysian doctors pursuing post-medical course or research at any recognised medical establishment in Malaysia or abroad.

Programmes & Projects of the Foundation

In consonance with its avowed aim to perpetuate the good name of Tun Suffian through education, the Foundation has to date inter alia provided financial assistance and/or assisted in the establishment of the following:

• The Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM) Research Group to facilitate a research on the National Land Code 1965;
• The Gonville and Caius College Tun Suffian Lectureship at Oxford University;
• The Tun Suffian Constitutional Law Moot Court Competition (annually at local and international levels), jointly with the Faculty of Law of the University of Malaya;
• 1st International Symposium on the theme “Coalition of Younger Generation Say NO to War”, jointly with the Criminalise War Club (Malaysia Chapter).

Tun Suffian Foundation Inc. Publications

• In Service of The Law - Simplicity & Greatness - Tun Suffian’s Legacy (Salleh Buang)
• A Cry for Help (Tunku Sofiah Jewa)
• Battling Adversity (Andrew Mohanraj Chandrasekaran)
• From Transformational To Balanced Leadership: Centring On Justice (Dzulkifli Abdul Razak)
• Tun Suffian Foundation Fact Book (ed. Tunku Sofiah Jewa)
• Datuk Ann Majeed - A Towering Figure in Social Welfare Work in Malaysia (Sharifah Mariam Syed Mansor Al-Idrus)
• The Turnaround Manager - The Life & Times of Tan Sri Dato’ (Dr) Abdul Aziz Abdul Rahman (Sharifah Mariam Syed Mansor Al-Idrus)

Future Projects

• To publish jointly with a renowned artist a book on Ethics/Values for the younger generation;
• To establish an online Tun Suffian Constitutional Law Library, jointly with the Faculty of Law of the University of Malaya;
• To establish a Tun Suffian Chair on Constitutional Law at the University of Malaya;
• To award a Tun Suffian Cambridge/Middle Temple Scholarship periodically for deserving Malaysian students to pursue undergraduate law studies at Tun Suffian’s alma mater at Cambridge and thenceforth to be called to the Bar at Middle Temple - the path of the late Tun in his law studies.

Board of Trustees l Message from the Founder