Dr M: If the suspect has a gun, shoot first
(MM) – Police should be allowed to open fire on armed criminal suspects, Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad said today, backing Home Minister Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi’s controversial “shoot first” approach that have triggered a human rights storm.
The former prime minister added that the police should refrain from pulling the trigger if the suspect was unarmed.
“When the police sees someone with a gun, it is better to shoot first if they are harmless then it’s better not to.
“I would rather put the harm to the criminal than the policemen,” he said when asked to comment on Ahmad Zahid’s controversial remark.
On Saturday, Ahmad Zahid reportedly advocated a “shoot first” policy for the police in dealing with suspected gang members in the wake of a violent crime spree that has resulted in Malays making up the majority of the victims.
“I think the best way is that we no longer compromise with them. There is no need to give them any more warning. If (we) get the evidence, (we) shoot first,” he was quoted as saying by news portal Malaysiakini.
Earlier yesterday, Ahmad Zahid took to Twitter in apparent defence of the remark, slamming his critics for failing failed to consider the rights of police officers and victims of crime, especially those killed.
“Mana hak asasi utk Polis dan mangsa rompak, tembak dan bunuh. Kenapa pejuang hak asasi tidakpun membela? Hak asasi hanya utk penjenayah?” he tweeted in Malay.
(Translation: “Where are human rights for the police and victims of robbery, shooting and murder. Why are human rights activists not defending? Human rights only for criminals?”)
Before that, the home minister came under heavy criticism from lawyers, human rights activists and politicians from both sides of the divide since word of his “shoot first” statement spread on the internet.
The latest criticism came from global rights group Human Rights Watch, whose Asia deputy director Phil Robertson said a “shoot first” policy in dealing with the over 40,000 suspected gang members, whom Ahmad Zahid claimed are mostly Indian, showed a gross indifference for the life and rights of the country’s minority population.
Former law minister Datuk Zaid Ibrahim also called for Ahmad Zahid’s sacking, arguing that a “shoot first” policy is a precursor to Malaysia becoming a “failed state” as it signals that the authorities are the law and that there is no need for investigation and public trial.
Lawyers for Liberty co-founder Latheefa Koya said Ahmad Zahid’s statement “confirmed our worst fears” that the government employs a shoot to kill policy when dealing with suspected criminals.
The home minister, however, has defended his statement, questioning why human rights activists are more concerned with the wellbeing of criminal suspects than for the police and victims.
