KEADILAN Youth condemns the increasingly abusive treatment by the authorities on so-called dissenters in recent weeks.
The latest report concerns the treatment of police towards Khalid Ismath who was said to have been coerced into confessing his guilt with regard to charges brought against him.
According to reports, according his own family members, Khalid was told to confess by police and only then would he be allowed to see his family members.
Such intimidation by the police infringes the rights given to an accused, who must not be compelled to answer questions unwillingly.
We also question the continuous and increasing use of the Sedition Act to quell dissidents on matters which are political in nature. We stand by our belief that the draconian law, which Prime Minister Najib Razak promised to repeal only to backtrack the moment he starts losing grip on his power, is against the people’s fundamental liberties enshrined by the Federal Constitution.
This also comes on the back of the arrests of Khairuddin Abu Hassan and Mathias Chang under The Security Offences (Special Measures) Act 2012 (SOSMA) and ridiculous charges brought against them for making a case of wrongdoings involving 1MDB.
There is a clear pattern of abuse of law whenever the integrity of the powers-that-be is called into question, highlighted by the use of SOSMA against individuals, even though the original intent of the law is to stifle terrorism.
The BN government should cease further intimidation of the people and answer the questions that are being raised. We also urge the government to stop hiding behind intentional misinterpretations of the law in order to avoid judicial actions.
