To the Ipoh police, their real grouse about DAP chairperson Lim Kit Siang was that he defied their authority to stop distributing leaflets in the Pasir Pinji market. He was arrested for defiance of police authority.

In the not so fortunate case of Ramli Othman, who was killed after he was allegedly assaulted by a policeman for refusing to stop at a police roadblock as reported A helmet not worn, a caring father gone .

The real reason of Lim's arrest then has nothing to do with the alleged "seditiousness" of contents of the leaflets distributed about which the arresting officer probably knew not much.

For what is so seditious about DAP's call for "No to 911, No to 929 and yes to 1957"?

"No to 911" is definitely beyond reproof here. Otherwise, President Bush and the Pope would not confer with the PM. "Yes to 1957" is laudable as it upholds the Federal Constitution.

That leaves only the middle part — whether "No to 929" (the PM's declaration on Sept 29 of Malaysia being already an Islamic state) is seditious.

It is law and commonsense that it is not. A printed or spoken word is seditious only if it incites hatred against the government. Hatred is inferred from public disorder and unlawful behaviour on the part of those incited by such a spoken or printed word. Fair comment in lawful public debate is not seditious. It is instead freedom of speech upheld in a democracy.

As it was the prime minister himself who raised the interesting idea of Malaysia being already an Islamic state to counter PAS' version, it is understood that the Islamic state issue, whether by Barisan Nasional or PAS, is and will be a subject of keen public debate for the coming general election.

In distributing the leaflets, Lim has merely started political campaigning for the election on this issue a trifle earlier.

BN simply cannot raise issue of '929' Islamic state and then prohibit debate on it. To criminalise the DAP for challenging it either verbally or through leaflets, the government would also have to arrest the PAS leaders for sedition. They too oppose the PM's '929' Islamic state. The only difference is that PAS does so on Islamic premises while DAP, on secular premises.

Our leadership is of course not so dumb as to raise an issue and thereafter clamps down on any political opponent that debate and criticises it.

In the coming election, the DAP's manifesto "No to 911 (terrorism), No to 929 (Islamic state ala PM's 'moderate' version) and yes to 1957 (secular constitution)" is better tolerated than criminalised. When "Yes to DAP/PAS collaboration" is added to it, DAP's incongruity becomes apparent.

Left alone, the opposition parties, and DAP in particular, may get enmeshed in a quagmire of their own conflicting agendas. Harassed, they secure popular electoral support instead.

To arrest and charge the opposition icon at this time for engaging in lawful and reasonable debate of a public issue like 929 is an unexpected boon and bonus to the opposition front in general and DAP in particular for the coming election.

The opposition so desperately needs another public outrage (like Lim's arrest?) now that the Anwar issue has somewhat receded.

While the leadership ought to realise this, some of its ' kaki-tangan ' (apparatuses) simply don't. They are more concerned about petty issues of whether their authority is being challenged. One can't blame them after having so long been nurtured in an authoritative culture that reinforces their perception of being not public servants but public masters.

The last time when the most senior one delivered a black eye to ex-deputy premier Anwar Ibrahim in custody, he did Anwar a great favour, and dealt the Mahathir administration a lethal blow in the eyes of both local and international observers.

The subsequent clumsy and inconsistent testimonies of those officers who testified for the state in Anwar's trial no doubt also helped the accused more than the prosecution in the court of public opinion.

There is now so much public call to shape up the police force and weed out the unprofessional elements and black sheep.

Their high handedness provides the necessary fodder to the opposition to cry "police brutality".

The attitude that being police officers, they have the power and could do what they want has become the major political liability to their employers.

It is an attitude that can do more damage for the ruling coalition than all opposition parties combined.

Predictably all seditious charges against Kit Siang will be dropped in due course to his utter disappointment. This the authorities better do before protests from opposition parties, non-governmental organisations and public snowball and rise to a crescendo. Maybe to save the faces of the arresting officers in Ipoh, he could be charged for obstructing justice and some minor offences.

When arresting officers cannot distinguish sedition from lawful debate, and breaking the law from breaking their pride, there is a serious problem to address for the Ministry of Home Affairs.

Unless the more professional top brass in the force keep the ones below in check and weed out the incompetent and unqualified, this problem of police high-handedness and disregard for law will remain an intractable problem for both the government and the rakyat .

Nothing said should be taken as a disparagement of the whole force. I am confident that it has got many officers of distinction, dedicated service and professionalism. The black sheep among the force however have to be taken out, and soon, so that they don't tar the rest in the force by the same brush and bring the government itself down by their actions.