Two members of parliament from Asia today lambasted Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad for using the Internal Security Act, which allows detention without trial, against 10 reformasi activists.

"It (the ISA) is used to preserve the power of Mahathir's government at the expense of fundamental democratic freedoms, such as the rights of free speech and free assembly," said Mongolian MP Dr Sunjaasuren Oyun at a press conference in Kuala Lumpur today.

Oyun and Cambodian MP Tioulong Saumura are part of a delegation from the Alliance for Reform and Democracy in Asia (Arda) which arrived in Kuala Lumpur last Thursday on a four-day 'rapid response mission' to meet with the six activists still in detention.

"The six brave individuals are being held at this time under the ISA are not guilty of any crime and are rather being held as a result of the lawful political beliefs," said Oyun, who is also Arda vice-president.

Keadilan vice-president Chua Tian Chang (Tian Chua), party youth chief Mohd Ezam Mohd Nor, supreme council member Saari Sungib and social activist-cum malaysiakini columnist Hishamuddin Rais are being held in Kamunting detention centre for a two-year period.

Four others have been released while the fate of the remaining two is still unknown.

The 10 were arrested in a police dragnet in early April to pre-empt what police chief Norian Mai described as a 'militant attempt' to overthrow the government through violent street demonstrations.

Archaic law

Stressing that the Act was an archaic and draconian piece of legislation, Oyun said that the treatment of the detainees was "unconscionable".

"Their treatment whereby they are held without charge and denied access to legal counsel and without the right to defend themselves in court is unconscionable," she said.

Under Section 8(1) of the Act, Home Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi is empowered to sign the detention orders, which are renewable after two years.

Tioulong Samura, a member of the opposition in Cambodia's parliament also expressed her dismay at Mahathir for resorting to the ISA.

"He is known to be well-educated. He has brought Malaysia such advances like the Multimedia Super Corridor and has sought to raise this country to a higher economic standing. But I can't imagine that such a far sighted leader still clings to such an archaic law," she said.

"The human rights record in Cambodia is worse but even we do not have such an Act as the ISA."

Despite the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) policy of non-intervention, Saumura said that she would continue to protest against the Act.

"Asean dictators like to use the pretext of non-intervention and I reject it. If the Asean countries had wanted to, they could have stopped the killing of two million Cambodians during the rule of Pol Pot in the 70s," Saumura said.

Archaic law

She said that the delegation was unable to obtain any response from its requests for a meeting with Mahathir, Abdullah, Norian and the six detainees in the Kamunting detention camp.

Oyun and Saumura were nevertheless present at an Anti-ISA Movement gathering on Saturday where a crowd of 500 attempted to hand over a memorandum over to the home minister at his residence.

The delegation has also met with local opposition leaders, human rights organisations and human rights commissioner Mehrun Siraj and the four recently released ISA detainees.

Arda was formed in October last year and consists of politicians, activists and academics from 13 countries in Asia "to support democracy and human rights on a regional basis".

Chaired by Singapore Democratic Party secretary-general Dr Chee Soon Juan, key members of the organisation include Cambodian opposition leader Sam Rainsy, Taiwanese presidential adviser Yao Chia-wen and Sirinun Senekant of Thailand's Democrat Party.