The remaining detainees held at the Kamunting detention centre under the Internal Security Act (ISA) will know their fate after the police apparatus and other relevant safeguards are in place, said Home Minister Hishammuddin Hussein.

“I just want to remind the public that the releasing of ISA detainees has been an aim since the outset of Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak’s leadership and is an ongoing process, so this is just the tail-end of what we want to do.

“But I want all the new laws and all the capacity-building of the police above and below the radar in place so that the public is not threatened or put at any risk when the new law and the Political Transformation Programme kicks in,” he told a press conference at the Dang Wangi district police headquarters this afternoon.

hishammuddin hussein dang wangi police station However, Hishammuddin ( second from right ) did not provide a timeline for when the detainees will know their fate, but said an announcement would be expected in due time.

“I am looking at the status of the detainees and I believe that certain announcements will be made about their status,” he said.

There are currently 45 detainees left who are being held under the ISA, which provides for indefinite detention without trial.

Even though the ISA was repealed and replaced with the Security Offenses (Special Measures) Act which was gazetted on June 22, the new law allows for existing detainees to be held at the home minister’s discretion.

hishammuddin hussein dang wangi police station 2 Earlier, Hishammuddin, accompanied by Kuala Lumpur police chief Mohmad Salleh and deputy police chief Amar Singh, visited the Dang Wangi district police headquarters and greeted enforcement officers from Dewan Bandaraya Kuala Lumpur (DBKL), the Civil Defence Department and Rela. He later received a briefing from the federal territories top cops.

Later, he announced that the government will be roping in NGOs to aid in combating crime as well as assisting in social issues concerning women and children, the specifics of which will be announced next week.

Hishammuddin said the Home Ministry is setting up of a special committee to handle victims of kidnap and violent crimes, particularly involving children and women. 

He said the committee would comprise the police and NGOs which fit the ministry's criteria.  

"We have identified issues such as kidnapping of children and crimes against women at shopping malls, which need to be addressed immediately to reduce the crime rate and reassure the public," he said.

‘We don’t have enough police’

Commenting at the press conference on claims that only a small part of the police force was dedicated to solving crimes, Hishammuddin said other task assigned to the force were also part of police duties.

“That cannot be. Doing other tasks, meaning other police tasks, then I believe that is true. We have about 120,000 police and they are supposed to look after women, children, snatch thefts, break-ins and terrorists, of course the numbers are not enough,” he said.

However, Hishammuddin added that the government was making use of the Government Transformation Programme to bring other stakeholders for crime-busting including Rela, the Civil Defence Department, DBKL and now NGOs.

Bukit Bendera MP Liew Chin Tong in a commentary today claimed that as of Jan 2011, for every police assigned to solving crime, six other were tasked with non-crime duties.   

Asked about the Home Ministry’s take on an upcoming film on the bloody May 13 riots entitled ‘ Tanda Putera ’, Hishammuddin said he has yet to see it and will look into the matter.