Anti-PCA protest amid strong police cordon
Suaram looking to handover memorandum to home minister protesting amendments to the PCA, which will be tabled for its second reading today
P Ramani, FMT
A group of 20 Suaram demonstrators marched towards parliament to protest the amendments to the Prevention of Crime Act (PCA) 1959 which is expected to go for its second reading today.
About 20 policemen formed a human barricade near the parliament gate to prevent the group which is hoping to hand over a memorandum to Home Minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi protesting the amendments.
The group are waiting for a parliament rep to take them in to handover the memorandum to the home minister.
The protestors were joined by Pakatan Rakyat reps as well as other NGO leaders. Also present were Bersih 2.0 co-chairperson S Ambiga and MIPAS sec-gen S Barathidasan.
Civil liberties groups say the provisions on detention without trial in the PCA violates fundamental human rights values enshrined in the Federal Constitution and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR).
The PCA (Amendment and Extension) Bill 2013 went through its first reading on Sept 25, 2013 in the Dewan Rakyat.
Suaram says the amendments proposed in the bill harkens back to the days of the Internal Security Act which was repealed by Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak on Sept 15, 2011 along with three Emergency Declarations.
The demonstration was organised by a coalition of NGOs, among who were Suaram, Gabugan Mansuhkan ISA (GMI) and Malaysian Indian Progressive Association (MIPAS).
At about 11am, the group was taken inside parliament by Opposition MPs Nurul Izzah Anwar (Lembah Pantai), Wong Chen (Kelana Jaya), G Manivannan (Kapar), Fuziah Salleh (Kuantan) and N Surendran (Padang Serai).
The NGOs were led by GMI chairman Syed Ibrahim Syed Nor who initially met a representative from the Home Ministry but insisted on meeting either the Home Minister or his deputy to receive the memorandum.
Since either minister failed to turn up, the representatives sat at the parliament lobby in protest. PKR deputy president Azmin Ali joined in as a sign of support.
After 20 minutes, Deputy Home Minister Wan Junaidi Tuanku Jaafar met the representatives and received the memorandum.
Syed Ibrahim wanted the PCA Amendment Bill to be withdrawn and urged the Home Minister to consult legal fraternities such as the Bar Council before it is tabled for a second reading.
According to the GMI chairman, there are several irregularities in the PCA which contravenes Human Rights values and will be detrimental to the public.
The Deputy Home Minister promised to bring the memorandum to the attention of the Home Minister and revert to the protestors and the NGOs.
