THE Human Rights Commission of Malaysia (SUHAKAM) is deeply concerned with the police’s demonstrably excessive response towards assemblies and the right of citizens to express their views and opinions.
Recent examples are the arrest of 31 youths for merely holding a candlelight vigil in memory of those who have lost their lives to COVID-19 as well as the closing of major roads and public transportations heading to Kuala Lumpur and Dataran Merdeka in response to the second #Keluar dan #Lawan assembly, which has in fact been called off.
“Both incidents revealed actions which are not in line with the State as a Duty-bearer, bearing the responsibility to allow and facilitate the rakyat as rights-holders their right to assemble peacefully,” SUHAKAM pointed out in a media statement.
“It was also reported that the vigil participants were forcefully arrested and transported to the police station, and were not informed about their rights nor the grounds for arrest.”
These, including reports that the group members were denied access to legal representation, is a clear breach of their constitutional rights as stated in Article 5 and 10 of the Federal Constitution, according to SUHAKAM.
“SUHAKAM calls for the police to respect and recognise the right to assemble peacefully publicly or privately, to collectively express, promote, pursue and defend common interests which is a fundamental human right,” the commission urged. “No restriction may be placed on the exercise of this right other than those imposed in conformity with the law.”
This is necessary in a democratic society for the interests of national security or public safety, public order, protection of public health or morals, or the protection of the rights and freedoms of others as stated in Article 21 International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights ICCPR).
Earlier on Aug 19, Bersih 2.0 had condemned the police for such abuse of power and unprofessional conduct after a group of youths who gathered at Dataran Merdeka to mourn those who have lost their life to COVID-19 were harassed, man-handled and arrested by the police from Dang Wangi with no explanation or grounds.
“The right to peacefully assemble is guaranteed by the Federal Constitution. The police as law enforcers themselves must respect and uphold the highest law of the land,” stressed the coalition of non-governmental organisations (NGOs) that focuses on electoral reforms and pushes for better procedural democracy.
“We call on the police to immediately and unconditionally release all the participants of the memorial service.” – Aug 23, 2021
