PARLIAMENT The government tabled a new bill today to give the National Security Council (NSC) extensive powers to deal with national security issues.

This includes declaring any area as a security area if the authorities are convinced that there is the likelihood of harm to people, territories, key infrastructure and the economy.

The new bill, dubbed National Security Council Bill 2015, will also provide special powers to security forces deployed to a security area.

It will also make the NSC the government's central authority for considering matters concerning national security.

The bill was tabled by Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Shahidan Kassim for its first reading in Dewan Rakyat.

The House will seek to pass the second and third readings by this session of the sitting, which ends on Thursday, Dec 3.

The bill tasks the NSC with formulating policies and strategic measures relating to national security. This includes sovereignty, territorial integrity, defence, social, political and economic stability, strategic resources and national unity.

The NSC is empowered to control and coordinate government entities on operations concerning national security and issue directives to them on these matters.

The eight-member NSC will be headed by the prime minister while the deputy prime minister will be its deputy chairperson.

The home minister, defence minister, communication and multimedia minister, chief secretary to the government, chief of defence and the inspector-general of police are its other members.

Serious harm

The prime minister may declare in writing a security area for a maximum of six months following the advice of the NSC, if it believes the area is seriously threatened by any person, matter or thing, which causes, or is likely to cause, serious harm to the people, territories, economy, national key infrastructure or any other interest of the nation.

If passed, the Act will also allow the prime minister to renew the declaration of the security area for another six months.

However the government will need to get Parliament to approve the declaration of the security area. The declaration will be annulled if the House rejects it.

Once the House makes the declaration, NSC will issue an executive order to government entities to rope in the security forces, which will be led by a director of operations.

The security force will be deployed from the police, its volunteer reserve, the auxiliary police, armed forces and the Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency.

The director of operations in the security area can issue a curfew order. Anyone who fails to comply with the curfew order faces a maximum sentence of three years jail or a maximum fine of RM5,000.

The director of operations or the person authorised by him or her will have the power to take temporary possession of any land, building and movable property in the security area in the interest of national security.

Reasonable force can be used

The security forces may arrest anyone found committing, or alleged to have committed, or reasonably suspected of having committed any offence in the security area.

The security force members may use reasonable and necessary force against a person or persons to preserve national security.

The bill makes it compulsory for the security force to hand in anyone arrested to the nearest police station without unnecessary delay. They need to submit a report on the circumstances of the arrest or seizure as well.

They also have the power to enter and search premises for dangerous objects and to seize them.

The NSC, the director of operations or any member of the Security Forces or the personnel of other government entities will be protected from legal proceedings and suits relating any act, neglect, default or omission done or omitted by them in good faith in such capacity.

"No prosecution for an offence under this Act shall be instituted except by, or with the written consent, of the public prosecutor," the bill states.

The prime minister can also formulate regulations for security areas to control the movement of people, vehicles, to prohibit certain activities, to taking possession of property as well as to demolish unoccupied buildings.

It will be an offence if the regulations are not complied with. Anyone who violates the regulations will face imprisonment of up to five years or a maximum fine of RM100,000.

The NSC, which was set up in 1971, handles security strategies, management of natural disasters and the borders between Malaysia and its neighbouring countries.