The Penang government is setting up a task force on custodial deaths following seven such cases in the state since January.

It is learnt that the task force will be headed by Deputy Chief Minister II P Ramasamy ( on the right ), with state executive councillors Jagdeep Singh Deo and Dr Afif Bahardin among its members.

It will be the first such task force in the country and it is not certain at this stage how effectively can it address the series of custodial deaths in the state.

The task force is to be managed as a committee that will look into the cases of custodial deaths, liaise with family members of the victims and monitor and pressure the police to act on those who are linked to these cases.

Suaram to be invited into committee

Human rights NGO Suaram, which has been in the forefront of the fight against custodial deaths, will be invited to join the task force.

One of the committee's first tasks is to reiterate the demands in the memorandum Suaram and several others submitted to Penang Chief Police Officer Abdul Rahman Hanafi last Sunday.

When contacted, Ramasamy confirmed that the task force would be set up soon by the state government.

"We are setting up the committee to look seriously into this matter, as several letters to the police and the attorney-general have gone unanswered," Ramasamy told Malaysiakini .

"We are planning to explain all this at a press conference on Monday."

The memorandum submitted by Penang Suaram on Sunday asked whether the police personnel on duty during the custodial death incidents have been investigated in line with the 1958 Rules and Regulations of Police Lock-ups.

The NGO wants to know the latest findings and developments involving these seven cases.

Suaram also asked what measures have since been taken to ensure there would be no more custodial deaths or incidents of torture in police lock-ups.

The memorandum was also signed by three political parties and 12 elected representatives from Pakatan Rakyat.