Teratai’s Jenice among 16 roughed up, arrested at Perak vigil

(Suara Keadilan) – Teratai assemblywoman Jenice Lee was among 16 people arrested by the police for leading a candlelight vigil outside her service centre in Ampang to mourn the death of democracy in northwestern Perak state.

The 16 were taken to the Pandan Indah police station. Ampang police chief Abdul Jalil Hassan later told reporters that they were arrested for illegal assembly.

This is the second time in three days that Jenice has been detained. She and Serdang MP Teo Nie Ching were arrested on Tuesday night for holding a similar vigil outside Seputeh MP Teresa Kok’s service centre.

Rising hypocrisy and readiness to oppress and black-out dissent

However, the police were rougher this time, with eyewitnesses accusing the police of brutality and even pushing the small-built and lady-like Jenice.

“This is another unforgivable assault on our country’s dying democracy. We have descended into something even worse than a police state in which the police just arrest citizens for the fun of it. We’re about to hit the 150 mark on the number of arrests made in relation to BN’s coup d’état in Perak,” said DAP Youth in a statement.

An unpopular power grab hatched by Prime Minister Najib Razak in Perak has become a prickly issue for his government. His cousin – Home Minister Hishammuddin Hussein who just a day ago promised greater freedom of expression – has apparently reneged on his word.

Tuesday’s detention of Jenice and Nie Ching had sparked a public outcry about rising police aggression, with Malaysians increasingly angered by Najib’s hypocrisy and readiness to oppress and black-out dissent.

Internationally accepted expressions of solidarity such as lighting candles and wearing black to protest the Perak crisis are now an open invitation for police arrest in Malaysia.