Three Malaysiakini journalists took the stand today to testify in the Human Rights Commission (Suhakam) public inquiry on the alleged police brutality during the Bandar Mahkota Cheras (BMC) fracas.

On the second day of the inquiry, two BMC residents Lai Wai Chong and Chong Yuan Chun provided their account of the melee followed by journalists Syed Jaymal Zahiid and Lee Weng Keat and videographer Ng Kok Foong.

All five witnesses narrated the night's event which turned ugly when siblings Chang Jiun Haur, Jiun Mein and two friends were allegedly dragged out of their car and Jiun Haur was bloodied after being bashed up by FRU personnel armed with batons.

The three-member inquiry panel headed by Zaiton Othman, Dr Chiam Heng Keng and Khalid Ibrahim was to probe whether the enforcement officers used excessive force during the BMC incident.

The testimonies of the BMC residents are in the this report .

FRU banged and kicked the car

Syed Jaymal and Ng who were only three to four metres away from the scene on May 27 said the riot police had instructed the vehicle driven by Jiun Haur to stop and asked the passengers to step out of their Proton Wira.

cheras mahkota fru assault on car sequence 280508 All three reporters, who covered the event for Malaysiakini, recounted similar tales - they first heard the car making a screeching sound before braking.

Then they saw some uniformed and plainclothes police officers and FRU personnel charging towards the car and started to kick and bang the car with batons.

They added that the officers then dragged all the male passengers out of the car to the side of the road in an aggressive manner, while the only female passenger Jiun Mien was pulled away from the scene.

"The driver (Jiun Haur) was already bleeding from his face when he was asked to sit at the side of the road with the other male passengers," recounted Syed Jaymal.

"They were squatting by the roadside and were still being kicked and hit repeatedly.

"They didn't even resist the attacks … they only cried to the police not to hit them," said Ng.

Police: Video clip 'edited'

Ng, who videotaped most of the incident except the parts where the victims were being assaulted, said he was "too terrified" to record any closer for fear that the police would snatch away his camera.

In the 30-minute video clip, parts of which were screened at the inquiry, the police could be seen trying hard to stop Ng from getting closer and videotaping the incident.

Lee also provided photographs as evidence to reinforce his testimony.

However, a member of the panel of observers DSP Ali Ahmad said that the video clip has been "edited".

To this, Ng said the video clip was not altered in any way which was then accepted by the panel as evidence.

According to the reporters, the three men in the car were handcuffed together, and Jiun Haur was thereafter led to the hospital to receive treatment.

The three newsmen also went to the hospital to visit Jiun Haur but had failed to secure an interview with him as he was rather weak at that time.

Watch 6-min video of police beating

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