Missing persons and the silence of the state

Murray Hunter


Missing persons and the silence of the state

P Ramasamy
Aug 23, 2025



Photo FMT


The Malaysian police force despite some minuses here and there is one of the best security apparatus in the country.

The police force today has evolved over the years into a competent and professional security apparatus.

Without the occasional political interference, the police would have emerged as much more competent and professional.

It doesn’t make sense that the police have not tracked down the culprits who abducted Pamela Ling earlier this year.

There are suspicions that the deep state could have been responsible for this abduction.

It doesn’t make sense for the Inspector General of Police (IGP) Khalid Ismail to say that the police needs more time.

Ling’s case might be quite recent, the time request might be plausible. However, what is not accepted is the missing daughter of M. Indira Gandhi who was apparently kidnapped by estranged husband some years back.

A few IGPs have come and gone, the police are still waiting for more time and information to bring back Indira’s daughter.

The Federal Court in 2018 order gave custody of the children to Indira by rendering their unilateral conversion as invalid.

Maybe something is holding back the otherwise effective police force from finding out those behind the kidnap of Ling and whether she is alive or not remains a mystery.

I don’t think it is rocket science to find the whereabouts of Indira’s kidnapped teenage daughter.

Maybe there are forces preventing her from seeing her mother. Maybe there are politicians in the country who don’t want Indira to be reunited with her daughter.

Maybe because of the religious status of the daughter. The mother, Indira, wants to reunited with long disappeared daughter, immaterial of her religious status.

The disappearances of individuals in the country raises questions about the effectiveness of the police as a professional law enforcement body.

Granted that the police is not an autonomous segment of the government, surely it has the independence and integrity to thoroughly investigate and make public their investigations.

The missing persons whether it is Ling or Indira’s daughter or others cannot be left in abeyance for too long.

It might not be just the question of the effectiveness of the police force alone but the larger role of the government in power.

A respected and responsible government should not give excuses in accounting for the missing persons in the country.

Why is reformist minded Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim despite his combative style in the Parliament and outside seems rather reticent on the matter of missing persons. It is not that Malaysia is an authoritarian state!