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MALAYSIA: Blogger is detained without trial

September 29, 2008

ASIAN HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSION - URGENT APPEALS PROGRAMME

Urgent Appeal Case: AHRC-UAC-217-2008

30 September 2008
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MALAYSIA: Blogger is detained without trial  

ISSUES: Arbitrary arrest and detention; freedom of opinion and expression; rule of law; criminal justice system
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Dear friends,

The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received information that a Malaysian blogger, arrested by the police on September 12, 2008 under the Internal Security Act (ISA) was given a two-year detention order on September 23. Two others, a journalist and a Member of Parliament who were also arrested on September 12 under the ISA were released after 18 hours and 1 week respectively. Meantime, it is reported that more than 66 persons are currently detained under the ISA which allows the Home Minister to renew the period of detention without limitation.

CASE DETAILS:

Raja Petra Kamaruddin, a political blogger and editor of Malaysia Today, an online alternative media, was arrested on September 12, 2008 under Section 73(1) of the Internal Security Act 1960 (ISA) for allegedly being a threat to security, peace and public order. He is alleged to have published hatred-inciting articles on his blog. He allegedly also posted articles that insulted Islam.

According to Marina Abdullah, Raja Petra's wife who was allowed to see her husband with their two children at the Bukit Aman Police Headquarters on September 16, Raja Petra spoke very softly and looked weak, pale and had lost much weight. He complained to her that he was suffering from lack of sleep because the night before, he was harassed on an hourly basis by officers who recorded statements from him. He further said that while he has not been physically abused he had suffered mentally. Marina said that his blood sugar level had dropped. She also added that her husband suffers from heart artery blockages and is on medication. Raja Petra's lawyers filed a habeas corpus application at the Kuala Lumpur High Court on September 16, seeking his immediate release.

Meanwhile, he received a two-year detention order under Section 8(1) of the ISA on September 23. He has been sent to the Kamunting Detention Centre in Perak where he will be detained for two years or more, depending on the discretion of the Home Minister.

On September 12, 2008, besides Raja Petra, 2 others were also arrested under the ISA but they have since been released.

Ms. Tan Hoon Cheng, a reporter of Sin Chew Daily News was arrested at her home in Taman Permai in Bukit Mertajam at 8:40pm on September 12 and taken to the Bandar Perda Police Station in Seberang Jaya where she was detained under Section 73(1) of the ISA. She was released on September 2008.

Ms. Teresa Kok, an opposition member of Parliament was arrested at 11:18pm on her way back from a Mooncake Festival reception held at her constituency office in Kuala Lumpur. It is reported that three police cars with over 10 officers stopped Kok at the entrance of her condominium and took her away. She was also arrested under Section 73(1) of the ISA. She was later released on September 19.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:

The Internal Security Act 1960 (ISA) is one of 3 Detention Without Trial laws. The other 2 laws are Dangerous Drugs (Special Preventive Measures) Act 1985 and the Emergency (Public Order and Prevention of Crime) Ordinance 1969.

Under the ISA, "If the Minister is satisfied that the detention of any person is necessary with a view to preventing him from acting in any manner prejudicial to the security of Malaysia or any part thereof or to the maintenance of essential services therein or to the economic life thereof, he may make an order (hereinafter referred to as a detention order) directing that that person be detained for any period not exceeding two years." (s. 8(1) Internal Security Act 1960)

Those arrested under these preventive detention laws have no right to defend themselves. They have no right to fair and open trial.

Since the amendments to the ISA in 1989, judicial review has been limited to questions of compliance with any procedural requirement in this Act. The Minister also has no obligation to justify or prove the allegations levied against the persons detained under these laws.

It is reported that at least 66 individuals are currently detained under the ISA at the Kamunting Detention Centre in Perak. M Manoharan, Hindu Rights Action Force (Hindraf) legal advisers P Uthayakumar, R Kenghadharan and V Ganabatirau and T Vasantha Kumar were arrested and issued with a two year Detention Order on 13 December 2007. (Please also see AHRC-FUA-001-2008)

Even though the UN Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of the right to freedom of opinion and expression in his report on the mission to Malaysia on December 1998 at the then Commission on Human Rights, made the recommendation that "The Government is strongly encouraged to consider taking further steps to fully guarantee the protection of the right to freedom of opinion and expression. These steps should include the repeal of the Internal Security Act ...",(E/CN.4/1999/64/Add.1) the ISA  is still being used.

SUGGESTED ACTION:
Please write letters to the government authorities listed below and urge them to immediately release Raja Petra Kamaruddin without condition.

Please be informed that the AHRC has also written to the UN Special Rapporteur on the freedom of opinion and expression calling for an intervention in this case.

To support this appeal, please click here:

SAMPLE LETTER:

Dear _________,

MALAYSIA:  Detention without trial of a blogger

Details of victim: Raja Petra Kamaruddin, a political blogger and editor of Malaysia Today, an online alternative media, arrested on September 12; and now being detained under the Internal Security Act 1960 (ISA), a Detention Without Trial law, at the Kamunting Detention Centre in Perak. He was served with a 2-year detention order on September 23.

I am shocked to learn about the arrest and detention of blogger Raja Petra Kamaruddin under the ISA.

I have learned that those arrested under these preventive detention laws have no right to defend themselves. They have no right to fair and open trial.

Under the ISA, "If the Minister is satisfied that the detention of any person is necessary with a view to preventing him from acting in any manner prejudicial to the security of Malaysia or any part thereof or to the maintenance of essential services therein or to the economic life thereof, he may make an order (hereinafter referred to as a detention order) directing that that person be detained for any period not exceeding two years." (s. 8(1) Internal Security Act 1960)

Since the amendments to the ISA in 1989, judicial review has been limited to questions of compliance with any procedural requirement in this Act. The Minister also has no obligation to justify or prove the allegations levied against the persons detained under these laws.

It is reported that at least 66 individuals are currently detained under the ISA at the Kamunting Detention Centre in Perak. M Manoharan, Hindu Rights Action Force (Hindraf) legal advisers P Uthayakumar, R Kenghadharan and V Ganabatirau and T Vasantha Kumar were arrested and issued with a two year Detention Order on 13 December 2007.

I therefore call for the immediate and unconditional release of Raja Petra Kamaruddin and all others who are currently detained under the ISA and all other laws that allow for detention without trial.

I also call on the government of Malaysia to immediately repeal the Internal Security Act and other laws that allow for detention without trial to comply with the recommendations of the UN Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of the right to freedom of opinion and expression in his report on the mission to Malaysia on December 1998 at the then Commission on Human Rights.

Yours sincerely,

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PLEASE SEND YOUR LETTERS TO:


1. Dato' Seri Syed Hamid bin Syed Jaafar Albar
Home Minister
Blok D 2, Parcel D
Pusat Pentadbiran Kerajaan  Persekutuan
62546 Putrajaya
MALAYSIA
Fax: +60 3 8889 3854
Tel: +60 3 8886 3299

2. Dato' Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi
Prime Minister
Prime Minister's Office Malaysia
Perdana Putra Building
Federal Government Administrative Centre
62502 Putrajaya
MALAYSIA
Tel: +603 8888 6000
Fax: +603 8888 3444
E-mail: ppm@pmo.gov.my

PLEASE ALSO COPY YOUR LETTERS TO:

Tan Sri Abu Talib Othman
Chairperson,
National Human Rights Commission (SUHAKAM)
Tingkat 29, Menara Tun Razak,
Jalan Raja Laut,
50350 Kuala Lumpur
MALAYSIA
Fax: +60 3 2612 5620
Tel: +60 3 2612 5600

Thank you.

Urgent Appeals Programme
Asian Human Rights Commission (ua@ahrchk.org)

Document Type :
Urgent Appeal Case
Document ID :
AHRC-UAC-217-2008
Issues :
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Extended Introduction: Urgent Appeals, theory and practice

A need for dialogue

Many people across Asia are frustrated by the widespread lack of respect for human rights in their countries.  Some may be unhappy about the limitations on the freedom of expression or restrictions on privacy, while some are affected by police brutality and military killings.  Many others are frustrated with the absence of rights on labour issues, the environment, gender and the like. 

Yet the expression of this frustration tends to stay firmly in the private sphere.  People complain among friends and family and within their social circles, but often on a low profile basis. This kind of public discourse is not usually an effective measure of the situation in a country because it is so hard to monitor. 

Though the media may cover the issues in a broad manner they rarely broadcast the private fears and anxieties of the average person.  And along with censorship – a common blight in Asia – there is also often a conscious attempt in the media to reflect a positive or at least sober mood at home, where expressions of domestic malcontent are discouraged as unfashionably unpatriotic. Talking about issues like torture is rarely encouraged in the public realm.

There may also be unwritten, possibly unconscious social taboos that stop the public reflection of private grievances.  Where authoritarian control is tight, sophisticated strategies are put into play by equally sophisticated media practices to keep complaints out of the public space, sometimes very subtly.  In other places an inner consensus is influenced by the privileged section of a society, which can control social expression of those less fortunate.  Moral and ethical qualms can also be an obstacle.

In this way, causes for complaint go unaddressed, un-discussed and unresolved and oppression in its many forms, self perpetuates.  For any action to arise out of private frustration, people need ways to get these issues into the public sphere.

Changing society

In the past bridging this gap was a formidable task; it relied on channels of public expression that required money and were therefore controlled by investors.  Printing presses were expensive, which blocked the gate to expression to anyone without money.  Except in times of revolution the media in Asia has tended to serve the well-off and sideline or misrepresent the poor.

Still, thanks to the IT revolution it is now possible to communicate with large audiences at little cost.  In this situation there is a real avenue for taking issues from private to public, regardless of the class or caste of the individual.

Practical action

The AHRC Urgent Appeals system was created to give a voice to those affected by human rights violations, and by doing so, to create a network of support and open avenues for action.  If X’s freedom of expression is denied, if Y is tortured by someone in power or if Z finds his or her labour rights abused, the incident can be swiftly and effectively broadcast and dealt with. The resulting solidarity can lead to action, resolution and change. And as more people understand their rights and follow suit, as the human rights consciousness grows, change happens faster. The Internet has become one of the human rights community’s most powerful tools.   

At the core of the Urgent Appeals Program is the recording of human rights violations at a grass roots level with objectivity, sympathy and competence. Our information is firstly gathered on the ground, close to the victim of the violation, and is then broadcast by a team of advocates, who can apply decades of experience in the field and a working knowledge of the international human rights arena. The flow of information – due to domestic restrictions – often goes from the source and out to the international community via our program, which then builds a pressure for action that steadily makes its way back to the source through his or her own government.   However these cases in bulk create a narrative – and this is most important aspect of our program. As noted by Sri Lankan human rights lawyer and director of the Asian Human Rights Commission, Basil Fernando:

"The urgent appeal introduces narrative as the driving force for social change. This idea was well expressed in the film Amistad, regarding the issue of slavery. The old man in the film, former president and lawyer, states that to resolve this historical problem it is very essential to know the narrative of the people. It was on this basis that a court case is conducted later. The AHRC establishes the narrative of human rights violations through the urgent appeals. If the narrative is right, the organisation will be doing all right."

Patterns start to emerge as violations are documented across the continent, allowing us to take a more authoritative, systemic response, and to pinpoint the systems within each country that are breaking down. This way we are able to discover and explain why and how violations take place, and how they can most effectively be addressed. On this path, larger audiences have opened up to us and become involved: international NGOs and think tanks, national human rights commissions and United Nations bodies.  The program and its coordinators have become a well-used tool for the international media and for human rights education programs. All this helps pave the way for radical reforms to improve, protect and to promote human rights in the region.