"ISA Will Not Be Abolished," Says Syed Hamid

Home Minister Syed Hamid Albar in no uncertain terms today declared that 'preventive laws' such as the Internal Security Act will not be abolished because they 'help to maintain' public order!

The much hated and dreaded law has been severely criticised and condemned over the years but the government has held steadfastly to its unconvincing mantra of maintaining public order.

The 'Abolish the Internal Security Act (ISA) in Malaysia' Petition to The Prime Minister and Government of Malaysia, had this to say about the draconian act -

"No law in Malaysia shames the country or undermines its democratic system of government more than the Internal Security Act (ISA), which allows indefinite, arbitrary detention without trial.

The ISA stands out as a barbaric law that goes against all our notions of what law and justice should mean. The ISA is an evil, anti-democratic law that can have no place in a country that upholds the Rule of Law.

The ISA subverts natural justice. Natural justice demands that any person accused of a crime should have the right to due process and to be presumed innocent unless and until he or she is convicted in an independent, open court of law.

Without due process and legal checks and balances, ISA detainees are left at the mercy of their captors. In the past, detainees have complained of cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment while under detention."

Yet Syed Hamid still persists in protecting, supporting and retaining the ISA as part of the government's armoury of dirty tricks, citing public order. Whom do you want to believe? The sceptical, worried and concerned public or your Home Minister?