Give clear timeline for improvements to draconian law

Give clear timeline for improvements to draconian law


YOURSAY | ‘No one should be incarcerated without trial.’

Ramkarpal: Abolishing Sosma not in pipeline, govt to improve it instead


AntiRacial: The government has no intention of repealing the Security Offences (Special Measures) Act (Sosma) which allows detention without trial for 28 days.

Instead, according to Deputy Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (Law and Institutional Reform) Ramkarpal Singh, Putrajaya aims to improve the law by introducing several amendments in stages.

I believe Sosma shouldn't be removed but improved. Any changes should be clear.

How long will it take to update it? Don't just say you're improving it and take another 10 years!

Ramkarpal, if you can't fix this soon, you should quit.

Your views on this law seem to have changed after becoming a minister.

The law says people can only be held for 28 days without trial. Why have some been held for years?

If the police can't prove someone is guilty within 28 days, they should let them go. Why aren't the police doing that?

Are they too embarrassed to admit they are incapable of doing their job?

IndigoJaguar7545: This is like when the previous administration said there was no need to abolish the IPCC (Independent Police Conduct Commission), and needed to amend it a little.

Who do you think will be handling those Sosma amendments?

Credible law experts? Civil society organisations? Human rights advocates? Police whistleblowers? Judicial whistleblowers? The people who know how it is abused?

No, the Deep State will be offering you token amendments and telling you that this is all they can do.

Perikatan Nasional has won and Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim has welcomed them in Putrajaya in all but name.

Pakatan Harapan thanks all its voters for their sacrifices.

It was all a political ploy to get Anwar's family into power and then to copy-paste what former prime ministers Dr Mahathir Mohamad and Muhyiddin Yassin had already started.

You'd think that Harapan and BN would want to appear different from PN.

But Harapan and BN think that PN voters care about this issue and might switch their votes come the next general election. They won't.

PN voters only care that it says "PN" next to the candidate's name.

Senior Citizen: Sad to hear this comment coming from this man at this time.

After all the hoo-hah about the negatives of Sosma when he and his party were on the other side of the fence.

We need to compromise on certain issues, which to be fair to them, DAP and Harapan have done magnanimously.

But a nation's leaders cannot compromise on those that involve justice and fairness to its people.

An innocent person incarcerated without trial for even one day is one day too many.

Kilimanjaro: Ramkarpal is a lawyer. Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (Law and Institutional Reform) Azalina Othman Said is also a lawyer.

When Ramkarpal was in the opposition, he vehemently opposed Sosma.

One can understand the security concerns and needs, but is it so difficult not to know of its infringement on civil liberties and abuse politically?

We have already seen that in broad daylight. Without giving excuses, don't simply drag and drag.

Maybe it is a mistaken belief that they are on solid ground and they have all the time.

The ground can shift anytime and that is the reality of politics.

In this country, you can wake up one morning to find a different government in charge.

GreenCheetah0027: Time to stop harping about stuff like "abolish Sosma". This can wait!

Even the West, which proponents of anti-Sosma hold to be the bearer of gold standards on human rights, is back-tracking on laws like this.

Every day on the global news (if Malaysians care to read), we read about the US, Europe, Australia, UK using their laws against certain parties on grounds of "national security".

So, give Sosma a rest for the time being!

There are many more important problems for the Malaysian government to solve and time is running out.

OrangeGoat5810: The biggest issue with Sosma is the 28-day detention without trial.

Ramkarpal has clearly stated that this is being addressed through the amendments which will include the element of bail.

Does this not show that the efforts are made in the right direction? As for the timelines, perhaps this can be made clearer.

Aisyalam: How long will amendments take, especially when you have not mentioned any timelines, or if you will even commit to them before the next elections are held?

Recall why all of you called to abolish Sosma when you were in the opposition. All this seems to have been forgotten now that you are in the government.

Salvage Malaysia: Bigger disillusionments are setting in day by day due to this government.

I believe they will regret not repealing this act big time the day they lose the government back to the opposition. You reap what you sow.

Pink: I have given up any hope that this government would be different from the previous ones. Let us not talk anymore about promises and changes.

Reformasi died the day Anwar was sworn in as the prime minister.