With the statements made by the Prime Minister, Ministers and Deputy Ministers prejudging the guilt of the ISA detainees as threats to national security, even before the expiry of the 60-day interrogative custody for police to conduct investigations, it is clear that the motivation for the ISA swoop is completely political and has nothing whatsoever to do with security.
As the Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Norian Mai said two days ago that the police have identified “a few more individuals” for arrest under the ISA, the police should stop the “cloak-and-dagger” game and publicly announce those wanted on the ISA list to report to the nearest police station.
I have no idea who else are wanted by the police in its first wave of ISA arrests, but I have no doubt that if those wanted by the police are committed democrats dedicated to political change through the constitutional process, they would come forward to surrender themselves because they would have nothing to hide and no reason to run away.
It would do a lot of good and hopefully give them some humanity
for the IGP, all police officers, the Prime Minister, Deputy Prime Minister,
Ministers and all Barisan Nasional MPs to read what Anfaal Saari, the 21-year-old
son of Saari Sungib, one of the nine ISA detainees, has written of his
trauma of his father being arrested on 10th April 2001 - the second time
under the ISA:
“Tiga tahun lalu, ayah pertama kali ditahan polis di bawah Akta Keselamatan Dalam Negeri (ISA) dan aku satu-satunya saksi di situ.“Namun, pengalaman itu telah mengajarku menjadi lebih tabah…
“Pada Selasa itu, tiada setitis air mataku pun tumpah demi pengorbanan ayah yang memang tidak akan sia-sia. Sambil memelukku, ayah sempat membisikkan kata-kata, ‘be strong.’ Penahanan kali ini kurasakan berbeza sekali.
“Aku mengenali ayah seorang yang gigih. Apa yang ayah lakukan diberikan tumpuan sepenuhnya. Dedikasi ayah dalam perjuangan, tidak kira ketika menerajui Pertubuhan Jamaah Islah Malaysia (JIM) sepanjang 10 tahun tahun sejak 1990, mahupun dalam era reformasi, merangsang kami adik-beradik menjadikan ayah sebagai model.
“Menggulingkan kerajaan?
“Biar apapun yang ingin difitnahkan kerajaan, namun aku lebih mengetahui betapa jujurnya ayah dalam perjuangan ini. Ayah yang kukenal, tidak suka budaya kerja yang tidak telus. ‘Bersikap teluslah. Buat apa nak sorok-sorok!’ begitu katanya. Adakah orang seperti ini yang dituduh cuba merancang untuk menggulingkan kerajaan secara militan?
“Semangat perjuangan ayah tidak pernah pudar. Pernah dalam suatu perbincangan, kami berbicara tentang masa depan saya selepas tamat pengajian di universiti. Katanya, ‘kesenangan dan kemewahan menjadikan kita sukar untuk berkorban dan berjuang. Kalau bukan kita yang bekerja mereformasikan kerajaan dan menggantikannya dengan kerajaan adil, siapa lagi?’
“Ayah awal-awal lagi memang sudah menjangkakan penahanannya dan memberitahuku hampir sebulan sebelum tarikh keramat 14 April lalu. Pesan ayah, ‘kali ini, tak nak nangis-nangis.’ ..
“Sering saya berdoa agar Allah memberikan kekuatan kepada ayah bagi menghadapi dugaan ini. Begitu juga kami sekeluarga. Alhamdulillah, ayah dianugerahkan seorang isteri yang cekal. Mama tidak pernah menangis. Tidak pernah saya lihat air mata mama dititiskan, dulu atau sekarang.”
Yesterday, Deputy Home Affairs Minister Datuk Zainal Abidin
Zin told reporters in Parliament that the reformasi activists detained
under the Internal Security Act recently were “safe” but were
being held at a location only known to the police,
He said he himself did not know their whereabouts as the police have not informed him.
Zainal is being very foolhardy to give the public assurance that the ISA detainees are “safe” when he has no personal knowledge of the matter and after the “black-eye” scandal of Anwar Ibrahim, who was said to be “safe and sound” when first arrested by the police in September 1998 when in fact he was assaulted to near-death by the then Inspector-General of Police while handcuffed and blindfolded.
Is Zainal prepared to resign as Deputy Home Minister if it could be established that during the 60-day detention, anyone of the detainees had been ill-treated?
In view of the history of ill-treatment, physical abuses and even torture during the period of the 60-day interrogative custody under the ISA, the Police should not obstruct the visit of the Human Rights Commission of Malaysia (Suhakam) to the ISA detainees as otherwise, the Police would be breaking instead of upholding the law.
Suhakam commissioner Tan Sri Datuk Anuar Zainal Abidin is right when he said that Section 4(2)(d) of the Human Rights Commission Act 1999 empowers Suhakam to visit the ISA detainees held during the 60-day interrogative period to protect the human rights of detainees.
Can Norian Mai explain why the Police are violating the Human Rights Commission Act in obstructing Suhakam from discharging its statutory functions by refusing to allow the Suhakam Commissioners to visit the detainees? Is it because the Suhakam Commissioners will find that the ISA detainees are not that “safe” under police custody after all?
The Police have obstructed the law long enough and they should immediately give the Suhakam Commissioners access to the ISA detainees.
It would be a very sad day for the rule of law in Malaysia when the Police degenerate into openly obstructing the law instead of being its custodian and protector in the country.
(24/4/2001)