Human Rights Commission (Suhakam) will hand over its first annual report which will contain "everything until the end of December 2000" to Parliament next week, said its commissioner Harun Hashim today.

However, Harun said he did not know whether the report would include last year's 'Black 14' event.

"I don't know whether it contains past 'Black 14' events but the report itself is very long," he said.

Last year, police launched a massive operation to derail the 'Black 14' protests, setting up roadblocks on approaches to the capital and posting armed officers at train stations. Water cannon trucks were used to disperse reformasi supporters and more than 50 people were arrested.

Harun was speaking to reporters at the commission's headquarters at Menara Tun Razak in Kuala Lumpur in this year's 'Black 14' gathering which involved the handing over of a human rights memorandum to Suhakam by opposition leaders.

Today's 'Black 14' - an event to mark the anniversary of former deputy prime minister Anwar Ibrahim's sentencing to six years' jail for abuse of power in 1999 - ended without any incident.

Harun, when questioned by the wives of ISA detainees Mohamad Ezam Mohd Nor and Saari Sungib as to when they would be able visit their husbands, replied that a letter had been sent to the police on this matter.

"We have already sent a letter to the Bukit Aman federal police headquarters requesting permission for the wives to visit their loved ones but there has been no response yet,"said the commissioner.

Militant tactics

Keadilan youth chief Mohamad Ezam and 'Black 14' organising chairman Saari were among the seven nabbed in the Internal Security Act (ISA) dragnet launched by the police early this week.

The rest are Keadilan youth leaders N Gobalakrishnan and Abdul Ghani Harun, Free Anwar Campaign (freeanwar.com) webmaster Raja Petra Raja Kamaruddin, social activists and malaysiakini columnist Hishamuddin Rais.

According to police, the seven were detained because they posed a threat to national security and were planning to "topple the government using militant tactics".

Harun said that one of the major issues Suhakam is examining is "whether there needs to be any changes to the ISA or not".

Meanwhile, when asked about the controversy surrounding former deputy prime minister Anwar Ibrahim's medical treatment, the commissioner said: "I think the government has already allowed Anwar to seek treatment locally, why does he have to go overseas?"

The former deputy prime minister who is serving a 15-year jail term on charges of sodomy and corruption has been suffering from a spinal injury and is being treated at the Kuala Lumpur Hospital.

His family had requested permission for Anwar to be treated overseas based on the recommendation by German specialist Dr Thomas Hoogland.

However, the request was turned down by the government and Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad has accused Anwar of "politicising" his condition

Since then Anwar's treatment issue has become a subject of domestic and international debate.

Unjust laws

Meanwhile, Keadilan president and wife of Anwar Ibrahim who was also present at today's press conference expressed her gratitude to Suhakam for accepting the "People's Memorandum".

"I am happy that Suhakam accepted the delegation because this memorandum represents the voice of the Malaysian people speaking out against the oppression of unjust laws,'she said.

The memorandum called for freedom of speech, of assembly and of the press; protection for judicial independence; the abolition of 'tyrannical laws' like the ISA; investigations into corruption, cronyism and nepotism; and a probe into allegations of police brutality.

Earlier, Wan Azizah, accompanied by her daughter Nurul Izzah, had led a delegation of opposition leaders to the Suhakam headquarters to hand over the memorandum

Also present were other party leader's including deputy president Chandra Muzaffar, women wing chief Fuziah Salleh, Lunas state assemblyman Saifudin Nasution, supreme council members Irene Fernandez, Dr Xavier Jayakumar and Johari Abdul.

PAS was represented by Tumpat MP Kamaruddin Jaffar, Kuala Terengganu MP Syed Azman Syed Ahmad Nawawi, Kemaman MP Abdul Rahman Yusof, central committee member Dr Hatta Ramli.

The DAP delegation was headed by its MP for Cheras Tan Kok Wai, MP for Seputeh Teresa Kok and its publicity secretary Ronnie Liu while PRM was represented by its president Dr Syed Husin Ali and his deputy Dr Sanusi Osman.