SEPTEMBER 20 — When I read about the arrest of former journalist Sidek Kamiso yesterday, his four-hour journey from Kuala Lumpur to Johor Baru to be presented to a magistrate court to be remanded but was subsequently released, I felt indignation in my heart about the treatment given him.
Why is it that I felt upset by this police action?
First, if the police has said that Kamiso had insulted Islam, then the police must in no uncertain terms say so specifically. In fact, I was looking high and low for what Kamiso had said about Islam.
I do not know Kamiso nor do I have access to his Facebook about his comments so I am unable to read what he has written. But because the police had arrested him, I was indeed curious about what he had said, and why he deserves to be arrested.
Second, I personally feel that it is improper for the police to take him on a four hour journey to be charged in Johor Baru instead of in Petaling Jaya or Bandar Utama where he is living.
Such an action seems to me to be punitive already since the prolonged journey under police custody has no doubt a psychological effect on Kamiso and his family who are left in the dark about his wherabouts.
What is worse is that Kamiso was released as the court denied the police their application for a remand. It seems to mean that the police has no real case against him, and from the news report, there was little to substantiate their case for a remand.
If the police is doing this deliberately, then it tantamounts to police bullying. And this must stop. If they are genuine, then they are doing their job but a very poor one at that. I know that the police can be very efficient but why the seeming inefficiency here?
Then, I thought about the family and the consequences of police action on Kamiso’s wife and children making them to go through unnecessary trauma. [...]
I would like to remind the police that justice must be seen to be done fairly across the board in our multi-racial, multi-religious and multi-cultural nation. It is not only about insulting Islam but also insulting other people’s religions.
What I am referring to are insults in the past that a number of pro-establishment people have made regarding other people’s religions. In particular, UiTM organised two seminars in the recent past of a year or two ago where the presenters asserted that the Gospels of the Christians are fake.
This is certainly an insult to Christianity. My question is why did the IGP not take any action at all? Until today nothing has been done.
The same could be said about the cow-head incident in Shah Alam offending the Hindus greatly.
Or in the case of vandalising idols in the temple in Ipoh a year or so ago, no charge has been taken against the culprit. Except that the police “became medical specialist” and recommended the culprit to be hospitalised.
Why is it that I felt upset by this police action?
First, if the police has said that Kamiso had insulted Islam, then the police must in no uncertain terms say so specifically. In fact, I was looking high and low for what Kamiso had said about Islam.
I do not know Kamiso nor do I have access to his Facebook about his comments so I am unable to read what he has written. But because the police had arrested him, I was indeed curious about what he had said, and why he deserves to be arrested.
Second, I personally feel that it is improper for the police to take him on a four hour journey to be charged in Johor Baru instead of in Petaling Jaya or Bandar Utama where he is living.
Such an action seems to me to be punitive already since the prolonged journey under police custody has no doubt a psychological effect on Kamiso and his family who are left in the dark about his wherabouts.
What is worse is that Kamiso was released as the court denied the police their application for a remand. It seems to mean that the police has no real case against him, and from the news report, there was little to substantiate their case for a remand.
If the police is doing this deliberately, then it tantamounts to police bullying. And this must stop. If they are genuine, then they are doing their job but a very poor one at that. I know that the police can be very efficient but why the seeming inefficiency here?
Then, I thought about the family and the consequences of police action on Kamiso’s wife and children making them to go through unnecessary trauma. [...]
I would like to remind the police that justice must be seen to be done fairly across the board in our multi-racial, multi-religious and multi-cultural nation. It is not only about insulting Islam but also insulting other people’s religions.
What I am referring to are insults in the past that a number of pro-establishment people have made regarding other people’s religions. In particular, UiTM organised two seminars in the recent past of a year or two ago where the presenters asserted that the Gospels of the Christians are fake.
This is certainly an insult to Christianity. My question is why did the IGP not take any action at all? Until today nothing has been done.
The same could be said about the cow-head incident in Shah Alam offending the Hindus greatly.
Or in the case of vandalising idols in the temple in Ipoh a year or so ago, no charge has been taken against the culprit. Except that the police “became medical specialist” and recommended the culprit to be hospitalised.
IGP must explain, or he is no one more than the head of a trouble-making agency which is under public salary where he and any of his policemen can be sacked.
Being still resident in Malaysia, I'm very shy to strongly criticise the PDRM these days.
ReplyDeleteI don't wish to have a knock on my door in the small hours of the morning and get whisked away in handcuffs to the opposite end of the country.
PDRM has apparently purchased , via their Singapore ditributor, top of the line, Israeli-designed software to trace targeted users on the internet.
The Israelis are apparently the best-of-the-best in this field. Even the FBI and CIA source from them.
Once they embed this software with all the ISPs in Malaysia - they have the legal power to enforce this with ISPs - they can trace the identity of virtually anyone who posts using a Malaysian ISP.
No one is safe, unless you and also your server are physically outside Malaysia.