P Dev Anand Pillai
It looks as though this police brutality will never end until we change the government and the inspector-general of police is forced into early retirement for failing to stop police brutality which eventually ends up in the death of the inmates under their custody and care.
The glaring concern here is that it is always the ethnic Indians who are dying in these lock-ups for one seldom hears of Chinese or Malay inmates dying in these lock-ups even though a fair number are arrested for alleged offences. While the federal government is trying its best to hide the actual culprits of A Kugan's death, more of the same unexplained mystery deaths of ethnic Indians seem to be surfacing by the day.
It will be too much of wishful thinking to ask what is the government of the day doing about it. Isn't this aggression in its naked form the actual opposite is what should be happening, ie, the police should be releasing suspected persons as soon as their investigations show that the evidence trail does not lead to these persons.
The Indians seem to be the main targets because of their socio-economic background. Being a significant percentage of the urban poor, the Indians are easy targets for police raids and shootouts. Racial stereotyping is another reason for this cruel and despicable acts by individuals or groups from the police force who have been entrusted with the country's public security.
If investigations are done first and arrests later, most of the crimes that we are hounded with can be solved but our system is one which arrests first and then proceeds to look for evidence to build a worthy case on the accused. If there is none, then some can even be created even it means that the accused has to confess to a crime that he did not commit.
One wonders if the government is actually bothered about deaths in police lock-ups which only happens to one race. Is the current administration bothered to ask the police for an explanation? Isn't it necessary to ask if it is '1Malaysia'?
Or is this the task of the MIC and the Indian NGOs because the dead is an ethnic Indian? What if Malay youths die unexplained in police custody, and if this happens rampantly? One is sure that the IGP would have been forced to resign, or go on early retirement. So the bottom line is, the lives of ethnic Indians are not important.
If the prime minister really means what he says by wanting to go beyond race and religion to bring this country to a new level of unity and racial harmony, then he has got to lead by example. It is of no use if publicity stunts and indoctrination propaganda are staged and play-acted before the people but one race continuously faces the same fate repeatedly.
If the prime minister is really serious about change and reform, then he must have the courage to pursue it even if it means facing the wrath his party members.
For the police force to be answerable to Parliament, the PM has got to make the first move and be serious about change and getting to the bottom about deaths in police lock-ups that involve ethnic Indians.
If Indians are going to support the ruling coalition again, then these deaths must be answered. If the police are going to carry on with these activities, then the best course of action will be street democracy which is fast becoming the only way the government will take heed and listen.
The old ways of creating musical themes with captivating slogans and continuous indoctrination are being rejected by a society which now wants more freedom and access to information without boundaries.
In a situation like this, the PM has got to show that he means business by first taking the IGP to task. But as we see it, the current administration is nothing but a large-scale public relations stunt.
Do ethnic Indians matter anymore or are we just a source of cheap legal and local labour? The PM and his party have got to take the cue.
It looks as though this police brutality will never end until we change the government and the inspector-general of police is forced into early retirement for failing to stop police brutality which eventually ends up in the death of the inmates under their custody and care.
The glaring concern here is that it is always the ethnic Indians who are dying in these lock-ups for one seldom hears of Chinese or Malay inmates dying in these lock-ups even though a fair number are arrested for alleged offences. While the federal government is trying its best to hide the actual culprits of A Kugan's death, more of the same unexplained mystery deaths of ethnic Indians seem to be surfacing by the day.
It will be too much of wishful thinking to ask what is the government of the day doing about it. Isn't this aggression in its naked form the actual opposite is what should be happening, ie, the police should be releasing suspected persons as soon as their investigations show that the evidence trail does not lead to these persons.
The Indians seem to be the main targets because of their socio-economic background. Being a significant percentage of the urban poor, the Indians are easy targets for police raids and shootouts. Racial stereotyping is another reason for this cruel and despicable acts by individuals or groups from the police force who have been entrusted with the country's public security.
If investigations are done first and arrests later, most of the crimes that we are hounded with can be solved but our system is one which arrests first and then proceeds to look for evidence to build a worthy case on the accused. If there is none, then some can even be created even it means that the accused has to confess to a crime that he did not commit.
One wonders if the government is actually bothered about deaths in police lock-ups which only happens to one race. Is the current administration bothered to ask the police for an explanation? Isn't it necessary to ask if it is '1Malaysia'?
Or is this the task of the MIC and the Indian NGOs because the dead is an ethnic Indian? What if Malay youths die unexplained in police custody, and if this happens rampantly? One is sure that the IGP would have been forced to resign, or go on early retirement. So the bottom line is, the lives of ethnic Indians are not important.
If the prime minister really means what he says by wanting to go beyond race and religion to bring this country to a new level of unity and racial harmony, then he has got to lead by example. It is of no use if publicity stunts and indoctrination propaganda are staged and play-acted before the people but one race continuously faces the same fate repeatedly.
If the prime minister is really serious about change and reform, then he must have the courage to pursue it even if it means facing the wrath his party members.
For the police force to be answerable to Parliament, the PM has got to make the first move and be serious about change and getting to the bottom about deaths in police lock-ups that involve ethnic Indians.
If Indians are going to support the ruling coalition again, then these deaths must be answered. If the police are going to carry on with these activities, then the best course of action will be street democracy which is fast becoming the only way the government will take heed and listen.
The old ways of creating musical themes with captivating slogans and continuous indoctrination are being rejected by a society which now wants more freedom and access to information without boundaries.
In a situation like this, the PM has got to show that he means business by first taking the IGP to task. But as we see it, the current administration is nothing but a large-scale public relations stunt.
Do ethnic Indians matter anymore or are we just a source of cheap legal and local labour? The PM and his party have got to take the cue.
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