Estate workers freed by Shah Alam police

comments     Kevin Tan     Published     Updated

Two former estate workers who had been detained by police yesterday while resisting eviction, were released this morning after spending the night in the lock-up at the Shah Alam district police headquarters.

A teenage student, 16, who had been picked up with them, was released yesterday at about 7.30pm.

Malaysiakini reported yesterday that 25 residents, including four children, had been detained by while resisting eviction from their homes in Ladang Bukit Jelutong, Shah Alam.

They were taken to the district police headquarters. All but the three were released several hours later. P Krishnan, 36, and K Jenson, 31, were detained together with the student for further investigation.

Police report lodged

S Arutchelvan, coordinator of human rights group Suara Rakyat Malaysia (Suaram), told malaysiakini that Krishnan and Jenson were freed at about 11.30am today.

"Both of them are okay and have lodged a police report on the incident at Bukit Jelutong yesterday," he said.

Shah Alam district police chief Hussin Ismail confirmed that all those detained during the eviction exercise yesterday had been released.

According to him, the police released all those detained after recording statements from them.

Asked about possible charges against those detained, Hussin said: "I cannot say whether (or not) they will be charged ... it is the prerogative of the attorney-general."

'No court order'

Social activist V Selvam yesterday claimed that the police's attempt to evict the residents was "illegal".

"There was no court order to carry out the exercise, " said the activist who is with the Community Development Centre — a non-governmental organisation which champions estate workers' rights among other causes.

Selvam said the police and the Shah Alam Municipal Council should not have assisted Kumpulan Guthrie Bhd to evict the residents, as the matter was a private dispute between the residents and the landowner.

The exercise yesterday was the second attempt by the police to evict the residents, most of whom are former employees of plantation giant Guthrie.

During the first attempt on June 26, police personnel had forcefully evicted 48 families from the area, which is part of a township development project by Guthrie.

Having no where else to go, 24 families returned to rebuild their demolished houses. Despite yesterday's eviction attempt, it is learnt that the families will continue to stay on in the area, although their houses have been demolished again.



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