An interest group today condemned a frontpage report in the Malay Mail today, which attempts to suggest that lawyer and human rights activist P Uthayakumar had not sought asylum in Britain as claimed.

N Surendran, a colleague of Uthayakumar at the Police Watch and Human Right Committee, said it was "highly mischievous and misleading" for the Malay Mail to have a frontpage headline saying: 'Asylum...What Asylum?', together with a sub heading claiming: 'So, is his asylum bid real, or a stunt'?

Surendran, a lawyer, claimed that it was wrong of the daily to headline the story with a message that contradicts the actual content of its report.

"If you read the report clearly, it acknowledges that there is no way for the British High Commission in Kuala Lumpur to know whether a Malaysian national had placed an asylum bid. In fact, the Malay Mail report is correct in saying that," he said.

Page 2 of the Malay Mail today quoted a British High Commission official as saying: "Even if he (Uthayakumar) did apply for asylum, we will not be informed of its status much later as the relevant authorities in Britain will carry out extensive checks before getting in touch with us for diplomatic procedures on this matter."

Fear for his life

Surendran today again confirmed that Uthayakumar's application for 'social asylum' was made in Britain (not 'political asylum') upon landing at Heathrow airport on May 20, on grounds that his "life was in danger" and that "members of the Malaysian police are trying to kill him."

Uthayakumar, a vocal critic of police abuses, claimed that he was assaulted and also threatened at gunpoint on May 10. He suffered injuries and his car was also damaged.

He later filed a police report claiming the police to be the perpetrators as he was instrumental in the case of G Francis Udayapan who disappeared while under police custody. Francis' body was later found in the Klang River near Puchong.

On May 17, he applied for a firearm permit on grounds that he needed to protect himself from further threats over his life, but the police rejected the request.

According to Police Watch, the incidents prompted him to seek temporary asylum until the government and the Malaysian police could guarantee his safety.