More detainees may join in a hunger strike by the end of the month, according to the Abolish ISA Movement.

 

KUALA LUMPUR: Charge all the 45 prisoners detained in Kamunting under the Internal Security Act (ISA) in court or release them immediately, said Abolish ISA Movement (GMI).

Its chairman, Syed Ibrahim Syed Noh, said today another eight of the detainees had decided to join the hunger strike to demand for their release.

“The Home Minister [Hishammuddin Hussein] must terminate their detention order. Let’s put a stop to this,” Ibrahim told a press conference at the Kuala Lumpur-Selangor Chinese Assembly Hall here.

Also present were Lawyers for Liberty coordinators Latheefa Koya, Fadiah Nadwa Fikri and Farhana Abdul Halim.

Two detainees, Mohd Fadzullah Abd Razak and Razali Kasan, resumed their hunger strike last week after Suhakam officers failed to get their demands heard by the Home Ministry.

Hishammuddin had promised to look into their plight on a case-by-case basis in April, but nothing has come forth to date.

Currently, among 45 people detained, 20 are locals while the rest are foreign nationals.

Ibrahim said Hishammuddin cannot take the hunger strike lightly as it involved the well-being of the detainees.

“We will meet Suhakam again by this week to find a solution to the detainees’ plight,” he said.

Fadiah also revealed details of allegations of torture related to her by an Iraqi detainee, Sami Hammd, when she visited the camp last week.

Sami, Fadiah said, was subjected to various kinds of torture after he was detained in January 2011.

“Sami alleged, among other torture methods, that his right leg was beaten repeatedly for four hours. He was also stripped naked and several officers had rubbed chilli paste all over his body including his private parts,” alleged Fadiah.

She said although all this torture happened during his first 60 days under detention, Sami was too traumatised. He has been prescribed anti-depressent pills to keep himself calm till today.

“He was teary when he related the matter and said he was no terrorist. Being a former military man in Iraq, Sami claimed that he had never encountered such torture methods,” she said.

G Vinod | 25th June 2012

http://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/category/nation/2012/06/25/charge-isa-detainees-in-court-or-free-them/