Govt not giving in to ISA hunger strike threat

MALAYSIA – The Government will not budge from its position to continue to detain 45 people under the Internal Security Act (ISA) despite plans by a group of them to go on a hunger strike. Home Minister Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Hussein said it was not for the detainees to dictate to the Government as their…

ISA detainees demand release, say would die from hunger strike

The detainees will not be released unless Home Minister Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Hussein decides to revoke their detention orders. — File pic KUALA LUMPUR, May 25 — A group of prisoners still held under the now-repealed Internal Security Act (ISA) are threatening to go on a hunger strike if Putrajaya does not release them within…

Yellow victims tell blue and black tales

Victims of police brutality during the April 28 Bersih rally relate their ordeal of being on the receiving end of ‘karate chops’ and ‘flying kicks’.  KUALA LUMPUR: Mohd Saufi Othman, 29, was attempting to leave the city on the evening of April 28 when he was confronted by a group of policemen who began raining…

‘Tortured’ Bersih participant rejects cop interview

A Bersih 3.0 participant who accused police of beating him up is now refusing to provide further statements to investigate his allegations of brutality. PETALING JAYA: Police have urged the Bersih 3.0 participant and alleged “police torture” victim Mohd Safuan Mamat to come forward so that a statement can be recorded to investigate his case.…

‘Cops beat me as I looked for food’

Two victims of alleged police brutality during the Bersih protest lodged reports against their aggressors. PETALING JAYA: A Bersih protester in search of food was allegedly served with a police beating instead during the final hours of the April 28 rally. At about 7pm that day, Abdul Razib Abu, 45, was riding his motorcycle near…

Police tortured me, claims Bersih participant

A technician alleges he was detained overnight and beaten up after he voluntarily went to the police station to give his statement about his participation in the rally. PETALING JAYA: A participant in the Bersih 3.0 rally who voluntarily went to a police station yesterday alleged he was detained overnight and tortured when he went…

MACC springs surprise on Fernandez

The agency wanted her to lodge a report and sit through another round of questioning, which she refused to oblige. PUTRAJAYA: The Malaysian Anti-Corruption Agency (MACC) this morning completed a two-hour long interview with Tenaganita executive director, Irene Fernandez, over her recent remarks of alleged corruption in Malaysia’s employment of migrant workers. But the interview…

Four lawyers file suit against IGP, govt

KUALA LUMPUR: Four lawyers from Lawyers for Liberty who were arrested when trying to provide legal aid to detainees three years ago, have filed a suit against the Inspector-General of Police (IGP) and the Malaysian Government claiming they were wrongfully arrested. Their counsel Farhana Abd Halim said they had filed the suit to make a…

Lawyers sue for wrongful arrests in 2009

KUALA LUMPUR, May 4 — A quartet of lawyers are suing the police and government for their wrongful arrests while attempting to provide legal representation to activists detained after a candlelight vigil in 2009, Bernama Online reported today The four — Fadiah Nadwa Fikri, 29, Murni Hidayah Anuar, 28, Puspawati Rosman, 31, and Syuhaini Safwan,…

Eight police reports over police abuse

Eight Bersih 3.0 participants who claimed to be assaulted by the police on Saturday lodged reports on the matter. PETALING JAYA: Eight participants of the recent Bersih 3.0 rally lodged police reports today claiming they were assaulted by the police during the rally. The victims, accompanied by Suaram’s executive director E Nalini and Lawyers for…

Federal court dismisses Saudi Arabian columnist’s appeal

PUTRAJAYA (May 3, 2012): Saudi Arabian columnist Hamza Kashgari, who claimed he was unlawfully arrested and deported from Malaysia, failed in his appeal today at the Federal Court here for reinstatement of his habeas corpus application. A five-man panel led by Chief Judge of Sabah and Sarawak Tan Sri Richard Malanjum unanimously dismissed his appeal…

Students, activists granted bail

The four were detained for obstructing DBKL officers from carrying out their duties. KUALA LUMPUR: The four detained yesterday for not allowing City Hall (DBKL) officers to carry out their duties have been allowed bail by magistrate Nur Azura Murah. The four, including two students, were detained at Dataran Merdeka. They face a charge under…

Four activists held, donation ‘stolen’

Four Occupy Dataran activists have been arrested while a student leader claims that the cash collected from supporters has been stolen. FULL REPORT KUALA LUMPUR: Kuala Lumpur City Hall (DBKL) enforcement officers detained three Occupy Dataran activists while another was held by an unidentified plainclothes officer. A student leader also claimed that the DBKL officers…

Activist claims trial to obstructing DBKL officer

KUALA LUMPUR: A student activist claimed trial today to obstructing a Kuala Lumpur City Hall (DBKL) enforcement officer from arresting another activist at Dataran Merdeka yesterday. Umar Mohamad Azmi, 23, was charged in the magistrate’s court with intentionally preventing Mohd Masran Mamat, 33, from arresting 34-year-old Mohd Fahmi Reza Mohd Zarin at Dataran Merdeka, Jalan Raja, Dang…

MYANMAR: What next for the Rohingyas?

Photo: David Swanson/IRIN Only a fraction of the Rohingyas who have fled Myanmar to Bangladesh are registered BANGKOK, 29 March 2012 (IRIN) – As Myanmar gears up for a by-election on 1 April, experts and community leaders are divided over what the ongoing reforms may hold for the Rohingya people, a stateless Muslim ethnic group living…