updated version

The Human Rights Commission (Suhakam) will meet with the 10 Internal Security Act (ISA) detainees at the Kuala Lumpur Police Contingent Headquarters at 9am tomorrow.

"I was informed by a senior police officer from Bukit Aman at 8am this morning that Suhakam could meet with the 10 ISA detainees," commissioner Lee Lam Thye told malaysiakini .

"The meeting could be over a period of one or two days depending on the commissioners as they may want to speak to the detainees individually," said Lee.

The commissioners scheduled to go are Anuar Zainal Abidin, Mehrun Siraj, Dr Mohammad Hirman Ritom Abdullah and Prof Hamdan Adnan.

Lee declined to elaborate on the issues that would be addressed during the visit, merely saying "it's up to the commissioners".

The commission is empowered under Section 4(2)(d) of the Suhakam Act to visit places of detention.

Suhakam's request, via a letter sent on April 13, to meet with the detainees had been repeatedly put off by the police to a "right time".

The 10 detainees - comprising reformasi activists and leaders of the opposition party Keadilan - were arrested in a dragnet from April 10 to April 26 to preempt what Inspector-General of Police Norian Mai described as a ''militant attempt'' to overthrow the government.

They are Keadilan vice-president Tian Chua, party youth leader Mohd Ezam Mohd Nor, party leaders N Gobalakrishnan, Dr Badrul Amin Baharom, Lokman Noor Adam and Abdul Ghani Haroon, reformasi activist Saari Sungib, social activist-cum- malaysiakini columnist Hishamuddin Rais, Free Anwar Campaign webmaster (Freeanwar.com) Raja Petra Raja Kamaruddin, and human rights activist Badaruddin Ismail.

Habeas corpus

The habeas corpus application for Tian, Ezam, Saari, Hishamuddin and Raja Petra was quashed by the Kuala Lumpur High Court on April 25, where judge Augustine Paul ruled that the court did not have jurisdiction to hear the case.

The appeal is to be brought before the Federal Court on June 18.

Shah Alam High Court judge Mohd Hishamudin Mohd Yunus will announce his judgment for the habeas corpus applications of Abdul Ghani and Gobalakrishnan on May 30. Those of Badrul, Lokman and Badaruddin will be heard before the Shah Alam High Court on June 14.

Habeas corpus is a writ ordering prisoners to be brought before a court or a judge to ascertain whether their detention is lawful.