Singaporean's detention by M'sian authorities was illegal, court decides
A senior Singaporean citizen has obtained a court declaration that his 13-day detention by Malaysian Immigration authorities in 2018 was illegal.
Kuala Lumpur High Court judge Noorin Badaruddin yesterday allowed 63-year-old Wong Chun Khuen’s legal challenge against his detention by the Johor Immigration Department from March 14 to 26 that year.
Speaking to Malaysiakini today, the retired senior engineer’s lawyer...
A senior Singaporean citizen has obtained a court declaration that his 13-day detention by Malaysian Immigration authorities in 2018 was illegal.
Kuala Lumpur High Court judge Noorin Badaruddin yesterday allowed 63-year-old Wong Chun Khuen’s legal challenge against his detention by the Johor Immigration Department from March 14 to 26 that year.
Speaking to Malaysiakini today, the retired senior engineer’s lawyer Arun Kasi said his client should have been legally brought before a magistrate by March 13 that year, as Article 5(4) of the Federal Constitution states that a foreigner-detainee, detained under immigration laws, should be produced before a magistrate within 14 days of arrest.
The lawyer said the court today disagreed with the Immigration Department’s claim that Wong was produced before a magistrate in Johor Bharu on March 12 and again on March 26, 2018.
Arun contended that the court found there had been a breach of Wong’s fundamental right, under Article 5(4), to be produced before a magistrate within 14 days of arrest.
The lawyer noted that his client was only brought before the magistrate on March 26, 2018.
“The court found that Wong was not produced as alleged by the Immigration Department and held against it.
“The court declared that Article 5(4) of the Federal Constitution was infringed by the non-production of Wong before a magistrate within 14 days of arrest, whereby Wong was only produced on March 26, 2018. He was freed in 2018.
“Yesterday (before the court), the issue was if there was an excessive detention beyond that allowed by the Federal Constitution, which the High Court answered in the affirmative,” Arun said.
The lawyer added that Wong, who is currently in Singapore with his wife and daughter, is quite happy.
On whether the Singaporean national would use yesterday's court verdict to launch a new civil action seeking damages over the wrongful detention, Arun said he does not have instruction from his client yet on this.
The civil action was filed by Wong at the Kuala Lumpur High Court in January last year.
According to the suit’s supporting affidavit sighted by Malaysiakini, the defendant, acting through his Johor immigration officers, raided Wong’s house in Johor Bharu around 11.05pm on Feb 28, 2018.
The officers then arrested him and a few other foreigners in the house. He was then brought to the Setia Tropika detention centre on March 1, 2018, and two days later was moved to Pekan Nanas Immigration Centre.
Wong was then produced before a magistrate on March 26 the same year, whereby he pleaded guilty to an immigration offence under Section 55E of the Immigration Act. He was fined RM30,000, which he paid and was then released.
“Since the date of arrest on Feb 28, 2018 until before March 26, 2018 (a period of 29 days), I was never produced before a magistrate, but produced only on March 26, 2018,” he contended through the affidavit in support.
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