The whole world is watching what Deputy Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi will do following the Federal Court's judgment that the arrest of a number of Keadilan leaders under the ISA was illegal.

If the original arrest has no basis in law, then the DPM's subsequent order for two years' detention also has no basis in law. The detainees therefore should be freed immediately.

I do not know what the police told Pak Lah. But whatever they said to him, the Federal Court says that the police were wrong.

The DPM — a decent and honourable man, in my experience — therefore was misinformed, if not lied to by the police.

This week the DPM is travelling in the United States, letting my fellow Americans get a look at what kind of person the next Prime Minister of Malaysia is.

If the DPM now signs an order freeing the Keadilan leaders from their illegal detention, the rest of the world will have a chance to see what kind of person Abdullah Badawi truly is.

Actions speak louder than words, my friend. So please do the right thing, because the whole world is watching.