Human Rights Commission (Suhakam) chairman Musa Hitam said he will be meeting with de facto Law Minister Rais Yatim to discuss ways of increasing the commission's powers in dealing with human rights abusers.

"I have spoken to Dr Rais and we have agreed to sit down and discuss this," Musa told malaysiakini at the Suhakam office warming at its headquarters at Menara Tun Razak in Kuala Lumpur yesterday.

"Rais has made known his ideas, so with this discussion we can compare notes and exchange views, and if there is anything good that come out of this, then we can improve ourselves (Suhakam)," he added.

On Jan 19, in an article Umno-Online - the official party website - Rais has lamented Suhakam's difficulty in summoning the police to appear before its inquiry into allegations of police brutality in conjunction with "100,000 People's Gathering" organised by Keadilan at Jalan Kebun, Klang, last Nov 5.

"What if the police or any other parties refuse to pass on information to Suhakam?" he asked.

"The (Suhakam) Act does not detail any consequences or responsibilities for failing to heed the request. Without these powers, it will not be effective as a human rights monitor," Rais said.

The inquiry has so far heard 29 witnesses that included Keadilan president Wan Azizah Wan Ismail and a 17-year-old student who testified about beatings and abuse by police with chemical irritants on the participants on Kesas Highway.

The inquiry is scheduled to resume on Feb 13 with the police having confirmed the attendance of the police officers named during the inquiry.

When asked when the commission would be meeting with Rais to discuss the inadequacy of Suhakam powers, Musa said "it would be as soon as possible".

Criticism expected

Meanwhile, commenting on Umno deputy president Abdullah Ahmad Badawi's statement in The Star yesterday that criticisms made against the present Umno leadership should be kept within Umno and not at gatherings, Musa said that it was "expected".

He was referring to the Sunday gathering of 3,000 people at PWTC organised by the Malay Action Front. It was reported that a number of speakers at the rally criticised the leadership in Umno and urged them to listen to the grassroots.

"To allow a gathering like that to be held means that we should expect something, so I was not surprised when I heard that they were making these critical speeches but whether they should or should not is up to the Umno governing council and the leadership to decide.

"If the leadership is not happy then it should be up to the leadership to seek an explanation from them," he said.

The "critical speeches" were made last Sunday by several prominent Umno leaders, past and present, at the gathering themed 'The Malays will not perish from this earth', which was aimed at fostering Malay unity.

Among those present were former deputy prime minister Ghafar Baba, former home minister Ghazali Shafie, and former Selangor Mentri Besar Harun Idris.

When asked if those who spoke were against Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad, he stated that "many of them were not and they were very loyal to Dr Mahathir".

Negative reports

Meanwhile, Musa thanked the high-level representation of the various government agencies present at the office warming as well as the press for the coverage that had been given to Suhakam.

"I thank the press, for without them we would not have been so well known. Even though we may have been reported in an unfavourable light and no matter how negative the reports were, they hold values and we can work on these critiques and improve ourselves," Musa said.

He added that the presence of ministers and other well-known personalities was "reflective of a positive stance without which we could not have gotten such a positive reception".

The guests included Rais, Foreign Minister Syed Hamid Albar, Home Ministry secretary-general Aseh Che Mat, Chief Justice Mohamed Dzaiddin Abdullah, Attorney-General Ainum Saaid and Bar Council president Haji Sulaiman Abdullah.