Amnesty International Annual Report 2010

Dear Friends,
Amnesty International’s 2010 Annual Report, published today,  again documents abuses in countries worldwide. The two entries of particular note to us follow, illustrating  AI’s overall concern that a global justice gap is being made worse by power politics — despite a landmark year for the working of the International Criminal Court.  Numerous governments are srill blocking advances by standing above the law on human rights, shielding allies from criticism and acting only when politically convenient.  The full report is accessible at www.amnesty.org  and www.amnesty.ca
Margaret John

Coordinator for Singapore and Malaysia

Amnesty INternational Canada
MALAYSIA
Head of state: Yang di-Pertuan Agong Tuanku Mizan Zainal
Abidin
Head of government: Najib Tun Razak (replaced Abdullah
Ahmad Badawi in April)
Death penalty: retentionist
Population: 27.5 million
Life expectancy: 74.1 years
Under-5 mortality (m/f): 12/10 per 1,000
Adult literacy: 91.9 per cent
Freedom of expression was restricted, with bloggers
prosecuted and peaceful demonstrators frequently
arrested. At least two people died in police custody.
Migrant workers, refugees and asylum-seekers faced
arrest, detention, and ill-treatment in detention
camps. Malaysia rejected recommendations made
under the UN Universal Periodic Review (UPR)
to guarantee the right to peaceful assembly, and to
ratify the UN Refugee Convention and the UN
Migrant Workers Convention.
Background
Najib Tun Razak became Prime Minister in April.
Political tensions increased in Perak state, located
north of the capital Kuala Lumpur and formerly
controlled by the opposition People’s Alliance (PA),
following three defections from the party. After a
meeting with the Prime Minister, the Sultan of Perak
ordered the PA Chief Minister to resign in February.
During a state assembly session in May, when the
National Front government representative Zambry
Abdul Kadir was expected to be appointed as the new
Chief Minister, the opposition Speaker V. Sivakumar
was forcibly removed by police officers. Dozens of
short-term arrests were made before and after the
assembly session.
Freedom of expression
Freedom of expression was severely curtailed, with
the authorities using various laws, including the
Communication and Multimedia Act 1998 (CMA
1998), to crush critical opinion.
_ Independent news portal Malaysiakini reported on
and posted two videos of a protest held in August by
Muslims against the relocation of a Hindu temple to
their neighbourhood. The government’s internet
regulatory agency ordered Malaysiakini to remove the
videos, threatening to prosecute them under the CMA
1998, alleging offensive content. Charges against them
remained pending.
_ Following a nationwide crackdown on bloggers in
March, eight bloggers faced imprisonment and fines
after being charged under the CMA 1998 for posting
critical comments against the Sultan of Perak over the
Perak political crisis. An opposition parliamentarian,
Karpal Singh, was charged under the Sedition Act for
threatening to sue the Sultan, claiming that the Sultan
breached the State’s constitution. One blogger pleaded
guilty with the remaining cases still pending. All were
freed on bail.
_ Mohamad Asri Zainul Abidin, a religious leader, was
charged in November under the Selangor Islamic
Administration Enactment for conducting a religious
discourse without government authorization. His trial
remained pending while he was freed on bail. If
convicted, he faces two years’ imprisonment and/or
fines of up to 3,000 Malaysia Ringgit (US$873).
_ In October, several police reports were lodged
against Sisters in Islam, a women’s rights organization,
after they criticized caning as a punishment for
Muslims. At least two of their leaders were questioned
by police under the Sedition Act.
Arbitrary arrests and detentions
The authorities arrested hundreds of peaceful
demonstrators, detaining them for up to 24 hours, in
an attempt to stifle dissent.
Five prisoners of conscience – leaders of the Hindu Rights Action
Force (HINDRAF) detained under the Internal
Security Act (ISA) – were released. Ten other ISA
detainees were also released. Nine people reportedly
remained in detention under the ISA.
_ Wong Chin Huat was arrested in May under the
Sedition Act after calling for a protest against the
government over the Perak crisis. That same month,
Mohamad Sabu, the Vice-President of the opposition
Pan-Malaysian Islamic Party (PAS), and at least 14
others, were arrested for participating in or planning
protests over the Perak crisis. Five lawyers representing
the latter 14 were also arrested. They were all released
after being held overnight.
_ In August, almost 600 people were briefly arrested
following an anti-ISA rally. Sixty-three were held
overnight, including PA Vice-President Sivarasa Rasiah.
_ In September, 16 members of HINDRAF, including
former ISA detainee P. Uthayakumar, were briefly
detained while attempting to hold a candlelight vigil in
Kuala Lumpur.
Deaths in custody
_ Extensive signs of torture were discovered on the
body of Kugan Ananthan, who died in police custody in
January. In October, one police officer was charged
with causing him grievous bodily harm.
_ In July, Teoh Beng Hock, political secretary to an
opposition leader, died after falling from an upper floor
of the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission Selangor
headquarters. The previous evening, the police had
taken him for questioning as a witness in an
investigation into the abuse of state funds by the
opposition state government. An inquest into the death
was ongoing.
Violence against women and girls
Reports of sexual abuse, including rape, by timber
company workers against Penan women and girls in
Baram village, Sarawak state, formed the basis of a
report published in September by a government task
force investigating the issue. The report confirmed
that women and girls as young as 10 had been raped
by timber company employees. However, state
officials denied the involvement of company
employees in the rapes and police dropped further
investigations.
Cruel, inhuman and degrading
punishment
People continued to be caned for various offences.
_ In June, the government announced that since 2002
they had sentenced 47,914 migrants to be caned for
immigration offences, with 34,923 canings already
carried out by 2008.
_ In July, the Shariah High Court in Pahang state
sentenced Kartika Dewi to six strokes of the cane and a
fine for consuming alcohol. In September, Nazarudin
Kamaruddin was sentenced to six strokes of the cane
and one year’s imprisonment for drinking alcohol.
Mohamad Shahrin and Nadiah Hussin were sentenced
by the Selangor state Islamic court to six strokes of the
cane for trying to have premarital sex. All were Muslim.
Refugees and migrants
Migrants, including asylum-seekers and refugees,
were often arrested and detained for long periods.
The government made no distinction between migrant
workers, asylum-seekers and refugees. UNCHR, the
UN refugee agency, had registered 49,000 people of
concern as of May. Eighty-nine per cent were from
Myanmar. An estimated 45,000 asylum-seekers
remained unregistered.
Conditions in detention centres remained far below
international standards. Reports of insufficient food,
poor nutrition, poor sanitation and physical abuse
persisted.
_ In May, two inmates from Myanmar died from
leptospirosis, a bacterial infection caused by contact
with water contaminated by animal urine, at the Juru
Immigration Depot. In August, a detainee at the KLIA
Immigration Depot died after contracting the H1N1 flu
virus. Other inmates were hospitalized in both
instances.
Death penalty
At least 68 people were sentenced to death by the
High Courts while the number of executions was
unknown. Malaysia did not support UN UPR
recommendations to introduce a moratorium on the
death penalty or abolish it. It also did not disclose the
number of executions carried out.
Amnesty International visits/report
_Amnesty International delegates visited Malaysia in July and August.
_ Malaysia: End caning as a punishment for all offences
(ASA 28/006/2009)