PARLIAMENT The government has tabled another amendment to the Prevention of Crime Act 1959 (PCA), reducing the remand period for the initial detention of those arrested under the Act.

In the first amendment tabled at the committee stage of the Bill to amend the PCA, the remand period is proposed to be reduced to 59 days, compared to the 70-day remand provided under the original Act.

This period does not include the first 24 hours that police can hold a suspect, taking the remand period to a total of 60 days.

The remand order will have be issued by a magistrate’s court and a sessions court respectively in two stages - the first for 21 days and the second for 38 days.

The new amendment document tabled today will not affect the two-year detention without trial period proposed in the original Bill.

Upon expiry of the two remand orders totalling 60 days, the proposed Crime Prevention Board, as per the proposed amendment to the PCA, can issue the contentious two-year detention order against a person charged under the Act.

PKR's Subang MP R Sivarasa said this PCA Amendment Bill is looking "more and more like the Emergency Ordinance (EO)".

"Now, it's resembling the abolished EO," Sivarasa said.

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