DAP veteran Lim Guan Eng criticised the nine-day detention of a 16-year-old girl under SOSMA in Kedah, calling it deeply wrong and traumatic for the minor and her family.
“Something is very wrong when a 16 year old girl can be detained under the Security Offences (Special Measures) Act 2012 (Sosma) for 9 days from January 14 to January 23rd. This experience for the young girl must be traumatic for her and her mother. The teen suffered vomiting and developed skin allergies during her detention in Kedah,” he wrote on Facebook.
He said Section 13 of the Security Offences (Special Measures) Act 2012 (SOSMA) generally prohibits bail for individuals charged with security offences, requiring mandatory detention. Exceptions apply only to persons under 18, women, or those who are sick or infirm.
“Serious questions remain as to why the exception provided under Section 13 was not applied when the 16 year old girl is not only a minor below 18 but also a woman. This unfortunate incident is unacceptable,” he said.
For him, SOSMA must either be abolished or completely overhauled and amended to ensure compliance with rule of law, due process and constitutional safeguards of human rights.
“The time to do it is now to prevent more abuses of power by the authorities,” he added.
The teenager was arrested at a roadblock on suspicion of migrant smuggling, held with adult women, suffered panic attacks, vomiting, and skin allergies, despite legal exceptions for minors and women under Section 13. —Jan 25, 2025
Main image: Bernama
