Madpet urges probe, reform after fatal shooting of Indonesian

Summary

• Madpet urges accountability and demands a thorough investigation into the fatal shooting of an Indonesian national, calling for authority officers involved to be suspended and held accountable.

• This is after protesters in Jakarta demonstrate outside the Malaysian embassy, condemning the incident and demanding legal action against the Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency officers responsible.

• Madpet pushes to replace the ineffective Independent Police Conduct Commission with the Independent Police Complaints and Misconduct Commission to ensure independent investigations and prosecutions.

Malaysians Against Death Penalty and Torture (Madpet) has called for a thorough investigation into the fatal shooting of an Indonesian national, emphasising the need for accountability from all parties involved, including Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA) officers.

Group representative Charles Hector stated that the investigation should extend beyond the alleged suspect to include those responsible for the shooting.

“Pending the completion of all investigations, all the said officers ought to be suspended from duties,” he said.

Elaborating, Charles emphasised that there must be no cover-up regarding the shooting.

“Anyone who broke the law, including the police, must be charged and accorded a fair trial, and, if convicted, sentenced according to the law.

“There should be a deterrent sentence when the criminal is a law enforcement officer or public officer. There should be no ‘selective’ non-prosecution,” he added.

He urged Parliament to enact laws specifically addressing crimes committed by police officers who fail to adhere to existing regulations.

“As it is strange just to have laws protecting the rights of suspects or victims, and no stipulated crimes if and when the police act in violation of these laws, thus violating the rights of people that Parliament intended to protect,” he explained.

Go back to IPCMC

Charles also called for the abolition of the Independent Police Conduct Commission (IPCC), arguing that it lacks real authority and is ineffective in holding law enforcement accountable.

“IPCC is essentially a ‘sorting house’ that will simply send it back to the police to act on it.

“The IPCC does not even have the power to investigate or conduct a public inquiry, or even publish a report of its findings.”

Instead, he advocated for establishing the Independent Police Complaints and Misconduct Commission (IPCMC), which would have the power to investigate and prosecute officers who break the law.

“IPCMC has the power to investigate, and also that will have the power to investigate, and also prosecute police officers who broke the law. If the IPCMC existed, they could have also independently investigated cases of police shooting that caused deaths,” he concluded.

Confrontation

Indonesia’s news portal Kompas.com previously reported that a confrontation on Jan 24 in Selangor waters between five Indonesians and MMEA resulted in one death and four injuries.

The incident occurred around 3am near Tanjung Rhu.

In response, protesters in Jakarta gathered outside the Malaysian embassy on Jan 30, pelting the building with eggs.

According to news reports, nearly 100 demonstrators held banners and demanded the arrest and prosecution of the MMEA officers involved in the shooting.

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