Suaram, GMI wants all ISA detainees freed
By Shazwan Mustafa Kamal, The Malaysian Insider
KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 3 — Local human rights groups heaped more pressure on the Najib administration today to free all Internal Security Act (ISA) detainees, following the release of the longest-held ISA detainee yesterday.
Shamsuddin Sulaiman, 40, suspected of being a member of the Jemaah Islamiah (JI) Malaysia, was released from detention under the security law that allows detention without trial as the Home Ministry decided he no longer posed a threat to national security.
“Gerakan Mansuhkan ISA (GMI) and Suara Rakyat Malaysia (Suaram) welcomed the release of Shamsudin Bin Sulaiman, who has been the longest detained Internal Security Act (ISA) detainee since 17 April 2002. He was alleged to be a Jemaah Islamiah (JI) member but till now has not been charge in any open court,” said a joint statement from SUARAM and GMI today.
Suaram and GMI claimed that Shamsudin’s release was only “partial” because he was still under police observation and not allowed to move about freely.
Both NGOs “condemned” the government for being “selective in the release of the detainees.
“We demand the government to release all the ISA detainees who has been detained without trial.
“GMI and Suaram view this development as another ugly episode of the arbitrary nature of the ISA. Neither clear explanation nor details were given to the nature of the threat or national security risks. In fact under the ISA, the Home Minister has no obligation to disclose to the public or the courts the details of the detention or release.
“He has absolute power to detain a person without trial or proof, bypassing any judicial process as well as to extent the detention arbitrarily. This is a clear violation of rule of the law,” said the statement.
The two NGOs reiterated their stand in demanding that the government abolish the ISA, along with other laws which permitted detention without trial such as the Emergency Ordinance (Public Order and Crime Prevention) 1969 (EO) and Dangerous Drugs Act Special Preventive Measures 1985 (DDA).
