The Malaysian Bar Council reiterated its call for the repeal of the Internal Security Act (ISA) following a controversial proposition by de facto law minister Dr Rais Yatim to curb judicial scrutiny of the reasons for detention under the law.

Bar Council chairperson Mah Weng Kwai ( photo ) said the failure on the part of the government to repeal the ISA is a matter of grave concern since decisions by the executive must be supported by reasons that can be substantiated by evidence.

"Attributing a laissez faire attitude to the judiciary in this instance and curbing judicial scrutiny as a response will effectively reduce the scope of judicial review and is tantamount to a reactionary onslaught on the credibility and independence of the judiciary," he said in a press statement yesterday.

On Sunday, Rais ( photo ) was reported as saying the laissez faire ( sic ) attitude of the courts towards security matters has to be addressed after a high court judge ordered the release of a suspected member of the Jemaah Islamiah, an organisation suspected of carrying out the Bali bomb blast.

Nasaruddin Nasir ( photo ) was arrested under the ISA on April 17 along with 14 others but the court ordered his release last Friday on the grounds that there was no evidence against him.

However, he was re-arrested the next day under the same act and ordered to serve two years in the Kamunting Detention Centre in Taiping, Perak.