Suhakam wants public to report police phone checks

Summary

• Suhakam wants the public to send in complaints and police reports if they experience phone checks at roadblocks.

• The rights body says there are legal restrictions to the police’s power to check people’s mobile phones and other digital devices.

• It asks the government to clarify IGP Razarudin Husain’s claim that police can check mobile phones without question.

Suhakam wants the public to send in complaints if they are subjected to random phone checks by the police as they are only allowed to do so under specific circumstances. 

The rights commission said members of the public should note down where the incident occurred and the police officer’s name and identification number if they encountered such incidents.

The complainant should then lodge a police report and inform Suhakam through:

• email at complaints@suhakam.org.my,

• the Suhakam website aduan.suhakam.org.my, or

• by physically going to any of Suhakam’s offices in Kuala Lumpur, Kota Kinabalu, or Kuching.

“Suhakam highlights that pursuant to Section 116B of the Criminal Procedure Code (CPC), a police officer with the rank of inspector or higher is only permitted to access mobile or other digital devices subject to a legal search as part of an ongoing investigation whereby the police have reasonable cause to believe that an offence has been or is being committed. 

“Sections 247 and 248 of the Communications and Multimedia Act (CMA) 1998 also require the search and seizure of the digital device to be conducted in connection with an ongoing investigation, having reasonable cause to believe that an offence has been committed,” it said.

On Jan 14, Inspector-General of Police Razarudin Husain said that the police had the authority to check a person’s mobile phone based on reasonable suspicion.

He cited Sections 23(1) and 116B of the CPC, as well as provisions from the CMA and the Police Act 1967.

A search can be conducted without a warrant if the officer believes that the delay in procuring a warrant could compromise the investigation, he added.

Know your rights

Meanwhile, Suhakam urged the government to clarify Razarudin’s statement.

It also encouraged the public to be aware of their rights when stopped, questioned, or arrested by the police.

It recommended the Malaysian Bar Council’s booklet titled “The Police and Your Basic Rights”, popularly known as the Red Book.

The booklet can be downloaded from the Bar Council’s website in Bahasa Malaysia and English.

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