Lawyers representing the remaining students of the 'Karachi 13' group held under the Internal Security Act over terror charges are urging Attorney-General Abdul Gani Patail to ensure legal access in order for them to file fresh court applications.

"We have submitted a letter to the A-G's chambers yesterday, calling him to give due concern to our application to the police last week," one of the lawyers Edward Saw said when contacted.

He added that the letter submitted to Inspector-General of Police Mohamed Bakri Omar last Monday asking for a meeting with the students has yet to receive any response.

Saw said the meeting should be expedited as the habeas corpus applications hearing will resume next Thursday at the Kuala Lumpur High Court.

( Habeas corpus is a writ ordering prisoners to be brought before a court to ascertain if there are any procedural defects which could render their detention unlawful)

"We need to get our clients to sign their respective affidavits," said the lawyer, adding that legal access was assured by the prosecution earlier.

Terror-link

On Nov 22, the court struck out the original motion filed by mothers of the students on grounds that those aged18 and above should be asked to sign their own affidavits for their habeas corpus applications.

The court rejected arguments by the applicants' lawyers of difficulty in gaining access to the students and called instead for the public prosecutor to ensure that legal access is allowed for the purpose of the case.

Four of the students were released on Nov 24 while two others have decided not to take legal action.

The students, aged between 16 and 25, were arrested upon their return from Pakistan on Nov 11 after spending more than a month in the custody of authorities there.

The students were arrested in Karachi in late September on suspicion of being involved in militant activities, but were cleared and released later.

However, Malaysian police arrested the group upon their arrival in Kuala Lumpur, claiming that the youths could have undergone militant training while in Pakistan and groomed as the cadre of regional terror network, the Jemaah Islamiah.

The legal team first gained access to the students on Nov 21 but lamented that the information obtained was insufficient due to the close monitoring by police personnel.

Meanwhile, Saw said so far only one - Faiz Hassan Kamarulazaman,17 - of the seven students has re-filed a habeas corpus application via his mother at the Kuala Lumpur High Court yesterday.

The police chief, home minister and the government were named as respondents

According to the lawyer, the mother of another student - Nurul Mohd Fakri Mohd Safar, 17 - was expected to file an application tomorrow.