Tears flow over sambal bilis as Sirul meets mum

 

Tears flowed as murder convict Sirul Azhar Umar and his mother Piah Samad embraced each other at long last at the Villawood Immigration Centre in Sydney.

Bringing a taste of home through some sambal ikan bilis, Piah and her daughter Noriatin Umar spent two hours with Sirul, who fled a death sentence in the high profile murder of Mongolian national Altantuya Shaariibuu.

"It was a sombre moment when mother and son embraced. Tears of longing flowed from this mother for her son far from home, whose fate is yet unknown," PAS information chief Mahfuz Omar said in a statement.

The sambal was cooked by Piah at the delegation's accommodation in Sydney.

When contacted by Malaysiakini, Mahfuz said Sirul remained stoic and dry-eyed during the initial embrace.

"It is the nature of men, and what more he is a police officer who was given special operations training to be strong, so he did not show any signs of grief.

"I was the one who felt moved seeing the two of them hug," he said.

Sirul, however, betrayed a "glimpse of sadness" when his mother was about to leave.

No photographs were allowed in the detention centre, which is actually a house which Sirul is placed on his own.

Mahfuz is accompanying Piah and Noriatin in what he terms as a "humanitarian mission" to reunite Sirul and his elderly mother.

They will be visiting Sirul again daily until Friday.

Altantuya murder not discussed

During their time together today, Mahfuz said Sirul did not discuss the Altantuya murder.

"We only discussed how his time in the detention centre was, we did not stray from my (humanitarian) mission," Mahfuz said.

Sirul previously told Malaysiakini he acted under orders and is mulling a tell-all interview with Australian media.

Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak however brushed off Sirul's claims as "utter rubbish".

Although there is Interpol red alert on Sirul, Australian laws bar the country from deporting anyone facing a death penalty at home.

Sirul and colleague Azilah Hadri are facing the hangman's noose, while Abdul Razak Baginda who was charged for abetment in the murder, was released without his defence being called.

Abdul Razak Baginda was known to be Najib's close associate.