Since launching its 24-hour hotline in April, Suaram (Penang) has received 86 calls pertaining to information and complaints about the police force.

Suaram Penang coordinator Ong Jing Cheng said 37 calls were related to queries about police training to ensure the force acts within its limits and functions.

azlan He added that there were five calls to complain about police corruption and another three to express dissatisfaction over the force’s inefficiency.

Other calls included queries about summonses (four), seeking legal advice (10) and complaints related to domestic violence, education and local council work (21), while another five merely wanted to share their opinion about the police, he said.

“From our findings, we feel its necessary for the government to take corrective action immediately to ensure we have a police force that is on the side of the rakyat,” he told a press conference in Penang.

Ong reiterated the NGO’s stand for the government to form an Independent Police Complaints and Misconduct Commission (IPCMC) to investigate and take disciplinary action on errant personnel.

Meanwhile, during the course of its work, the NGO has also found several cases of police abuse of power and a death in custody in Penang.

Ong said it has been brought to its attention that up to April 26, there had been five people who were detained without trial, one death in police custody and three instances when the police were used a “political tool”.

He also urged that all forms of tortures be stopped so that death in custody will not recur.

“An independent body to investigate the cause of death for those who died in custody must be formed and it should not be manipulated,” he added.

After April 26, Ong said the NGO recorded two cases of police brutality. On Aug 8 a woman accused of theft claimed that a policeman had blindfolded and later assaulted her while she was in police detention.

“We are deeply concerned about the case because such treatment may cause death,” said Ong.

Ong also reminded the police that alleged police abuse included the case of three Parti Sosialis Malaysia female members who were ‘forced’ to change their clothes in front of two policemen.

There were also reports that 15 former drug addicts on methadone treatment had been allegedly victimised by police over an unnecessary drug test.

“We also got to know that three policemen were asked to investigate a watch theft case at Lorong Kulit, Penang, on Aug 1 but when they found out that the suspected theft was their colleague, the person was asked to pack and go away immediately,” he lamented.

‘Political tool’ to disrupt rallies and forums

Meanwhile, Ong said the police had been used as a “political tool” to disrupt rallies and forums by election watchdog Bersih 2.0 and PSM when it launched its ‘ Udahlahtu, Bersaralah ’ campaign in Penang in June.

About 200 Light Strike Force personnel was also used to ‘disturb’ a ceramah in Pongsu Seribu, Kepala Batas on June 30, where Bukit Tengah assemblyperson Ong Chin Wen and Toh Kin Woon, a Bersih 2.0 representatives, were speaking.

After the event, the duo were called by police to give their statements at the Kepala Batas police headquarters.

Meanwhile, Ong lamented that the police, whose duty is to protect the people, did not do their jobs when about 100 protesters from nearby villages in Kepala Batas heckled the families and supporters of PSM in front of the police station.

NONE “They also did not do anything when a  group of civil society members went to the police station in Jalan Pattani to hand over a memorandum to Penang police chief Ayub Yaacob,” he said.

“At that time, a group of gangsters, including Suara Anak Anak Malaysia leader Mohamed Ghani Abd Jiman harassed our members, but police did nothing to stop them,” he added.

Other well-known cases monitored by the NGO included the detention of six PSM activists, among them Sungai Siput MP Dr D NONE Jeyakumar, under the Emergency Ordinance on July 2. All were released 29 days later.

Then there was the case of ex-Suaram Penang coordinator Lau Shu Shi ( right ) who was charged with causing a ‘disturbance’ to the police when she accompanied a fellow human rights activist to lodge a police report in Jalan Pattani in 2008.

“The court finally decided that Lau was not guilty and acquitted her on the spot. From the case, it clearly shows that police will simply charge anyone who is against them,” he added.