Suhakam: Placing ISA detainees in Kamunting waste of time, money

comments     Leong Kar Yen     Published     Updated

Suhakam vice-chairperson Harun Hashim today said placing individuals detained under the Internal Security Act in the Kamunting Detention Centre in Perak was a waste of time and public funds.

He said these detainees were being held in Kamunting for two years without a proper chance to be rehabilitated and that was a waste of public funds.

"We were told the detainees were just being dumped here and prison officials in Kamunting were not given any orders as to what to do with them," he said during an inquiry into the conditions of ISA detentions at Suhakam headquarters in Kuala Lumpur.

"It's more like punishment than rehabilitation and it's a waste of time since none of the detainees are doing anything," he added.

In comparison, Harun said, those in prisons were at least taught a trade.

Today's proceedings is the continuation of Suhakam's two-and-a-half day inquiry into ISA detentions which began on June 18.

The commission has interviewed a total of 20 people, including three police officers today.

The inquiry is chaired by Harun and he is assisted by fellow commissioners Prof Hamdan Adnan and Asiah Abu Samah.

Not subjected to abuse

Among today's witnesses, was police special branch social intelligence assistant director Anuar Bashah Mohd Sohore who said ISA detainees are never subjected to abuse while in custody.

"They are given medical checkups before they are brought in and if the doctor who conducts the checkup says they cannot proceed with the interrogation, we do not conduct the interrogation," he said.

Anuar, who has been with the force for 32 years, also quipped that detainees are happy to be under police custody as they get a free health check and have doctors diagnose them as suffering from ailments such as hypertension.

The police officer also denied that the hypertension suffered was related to the detention and interrogation when questioned by Harun.

"We need to find out their records, their activities both inside and outside the country and if they are university lecturers we have to find out what country they have been to, where they have gone for sabbatical, leave, vacation and then we have to criss-cross with other government agencies," he said.

No 'turning over'

Those detained under the ISA can be held incommunicado for 60 days after which their detention can be extended for two years at the discretion of the home affairs minister.

The security law, which permits detention without trial, was formulated to deal with the communist insurgency but later evoked strong criticism when it was used to crack down on political opponents and activists.

Asked if the interrogation was a form of brainwashing used for 'turning over' detainees, the police officer said the interrogation was only to reason with the detainees that they had committed wrongs.

"We don't use tactics like turning them over but we talk and reason with them, telling them that what they are doing is wrong and try to return them to the mainstream of society," he said.

Harun then told Anuar of an ISA detainee's allegation that she was told to strip twice in a police lock-up during her initial 60-day detention.

"We have conducted an inquiry on the matter but she told us that she could not recognise the police officer who she claimed had asked her to strip," Anuar replied.

The detainee, Ng Chooi Choon, related her ordeal to the Suhakam commissioners on June 19 during their earlier inquiry.

The 56-year-old mother of three is being held at the Kamunting Detention Centre for forging travel documents.

Constant contact

Meanwhile, Anuar also told the commissioners that detainees were never placed in solitary confinement and were in constant contact with people outside their cells.

He added that since 1990 until 2002, 387 individuals have been detained under the ISA. The other two police personnel interviewed were Sentul police station chief Mohammad Ali Kassim and the officer in charge of the station's lock-up, M Verasuntharam.

The duo, who were quizzed mainly on procedural matters, said the Sentul police station was a transit point for ISA detainees.

The Suhakam commissioners said they would have to study their findings thus far before deciding on their next course of action.



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