Seven people, including one activist, have been arrested today for trying to stop the demolition of houses in Kampung Jinjang Selatan Tambahan in Kuala Lumpur.

Six of those arrested were residents whose houses were being demolished by the Kuala Lumpur City Hall (DBKL). The sole activist - Julie Wong - was from urban poor people's organisation Permas.

They have been taken to the Sentul district police headquarters for questioning.

Human rights movement Suaram said that it received reports that several people were injured caused by DBKL officers during the incident.

"We call on the police to release the seven individuals immediately. We remind the police that their duty is to ensure safety of all Malaysians and to curb violence from being used against residents and activists instead of arresting them," said Suaram in a statement.

The movement also condemned DBKL for taking a heavy-handed approach in the demolition.

"We also call on DBKL to respect the rights of the residents of Kampung Jinjang Selatan Tambahan, to halt demolition works immediately and to take the concerns of the residents of Kampung Jinjang Selatan Tambahan into consideration," it added.

The demolition exercise by DBKL today involved 17 houses to make way for a new road connecting Jalan Kepong to Jalan Segambut.

The new road project is now stalled as a result of these houses which lie on the way.

Deadline expired yesterday

Although DBKL has issued these residences a notice to relocate, the residents claimed that the notice was served to residents of Kampung Benteng.

Kampung Benteng no longer exists as they have been evicted by DBKL for the same roadwork.

The Kampung Jinjang Selatan Tambahan families have been living here for more than 40 years. They have been issued with temporary occupancy licenses until 1997.

The deadline for them to evict their houses was June 14. As compensation, DBKL has offered flats at nearby Batu village and RM1,000 to each family.

The families claimed that they had sentimental values attached to their houses and could not adapt to stay in flats. They also claimed that the money given was insufficient.