Full House at Bar Council’s Public Forum Titled “Emergency Ordinance – The Other ISA” (20 July 2011)

Contributed by Sumitha Shaanthinni Kishna, Executive Officer, with photos by Satha Selvan Subramaniam, Administrative Assistant, Bar Council 

The recent public forum on “Emergency Ordinance – The Other ISA” that was held at 8:30 pm, on 20 July 2011 (Wednesday) witnessed a full house at the Bar Council Auditorium!  The event, jointly organised by Bar Council, Suara Rakyat Malaysia (“SUARAM”) and Gerakan Mansuhkan ISA (“GMI”), was attended by approximately 270 participants.  

Before the public forum began, a candlelight vigil was held for the six activists of Parti Sosialis Malaysia (“PSM”) – Dr Michael Jeyakumar Devaraj, M Saraswathy, Choo Chon Kai, M Sukumaran, A Letchumanan and Sarat Babu – who had been detained under the Emergency (Public Order and Prevention of Crime) Ordinance 1969 (“EO”) since 2 July 2011.  The lively vigil, which took place at 7:45 pm in front of the Bar Council premises, was interspersed with the ardent cries of “Hidup! Hidup! Hidup rakyat!” and “Bebas! Bebas! Bebas tahanan!”, and ended with solidarity speeches.  A small team of police officers kept watch on the peaceful gathering from across the road. 

After the vigil, participants headed up to the Bar Council Auditorium for the public forum.  With practically all 250 seats occupied, the auditorium was almost filled to the brim, causing many members of the audience, including the media crew, to stretch out on the floor.  The event was also broadcast live on durianFM.com, an online radio station – the first time a Bar Council public forum was aired in real time.

The public forum, which was moderated by Syed Ibrahim Syed Noh, Chairperson of GMI, featured a panel of speakers consisting of Christopher Leong, Vice-President of the Malaysian Bar, S Arutchelvan, Secretary-General of PSM and Edmund Bon, Member of the Malaysian Bar.  Christopher Leong began by discussing the meaning and interpretation of article 10 of the Federal Constitution, on the freedom of assembly and its curtailment under the EO.  S Arutchelvan then gave a witness account of what had transpired at the arrest scene of the six activists and his encounter with the police at the police station.  Edmund Bon, on the other hand, updated the audience on the progress of the habeas corpus application filed on behalf of the six activists. 

Although the three speakers relayed different aspects of the arrest, they spoke in unison when calling for the repeal of the EO.  The audience was reminded that while the Internal Security Act (“ISA”) had gained notorious publicity over the years due to fervent and incessant campaigning by anti-ISA groups, the EO was no less severe in its disregard for human rights and due process of the law.  Similar to the ISA, the EO allowed the police to arrest and detain a person without trial, in addition to denying detainees the chance to defend themselves in a full and fair hearing.  However, unlike the ISA, information regarding EO detainees has rarely been made public.  Edmund Bon revealed that a startling figure of approximately 1,000 to 2,000 detainees, including minors below the age of 18 years, were currently held under the EO.

Observing the overwhelming turnout at the public forum, Nalini Elumalai, Programme Manager of SUARAM, commented that it was “the biggest show of support for the six activists so far”.  She elaborated that it also reflected the eagerness of the Malaysian public to learn more about the EO and its arbitrary use by the police and Ministry of Home Affairs.  Thus, it should come as no surprise that during the question-and-answer session that followed, several participants raised questions about the EO, in addition to discussing the best ways to repeal it and garner more support for the release of the six activists.  Anne Ooi, Malaysia’s very own “Lady of Liberty”, was also present to encourage participants to continue to rally for the release of the six activists.

In conclusion, the following excerpt from the Malaysian Bar press release dated 5 July 2011 (“Halt Assault on Rule of Law and Democratic Rights”) sums up the Bar’s position:

The Malaysian Bar reiterates its resolute stand that the EO, along with the Internal Security Act 1960 and other preventive detention legislation, are archaic and repressive laws whose continued use is repugnant to civil society… The authorities should charge the six individuals in open court and disclose the evidence against them so that they may receive a full and fair hearing, or release them without delay.

Click here to listen to a recording of the public forum.  

Note: On 29 July 2011 (Friday), the six PSM members were released unconditionally, after 28 days in detention.