Suhakam: Right to assemble denied - Federal Constitution "powerless", an insult!
The Human Rights Commission of Malaysia (Suhakam) yesterday held that the public right to peaceful assembly has been blatantly and violently denied by the authorities during Sunday night’s candlelight vigil in conjunction with the 50th anniversary of the Internal Security Act. "The arrest of 30 people for suspected participation in the vigil held at Dataran Petaling Jaya was a violation of their human rights to peaceful assembly," said Suhakam chairman Tan Sri Hasmy Agam in a statement today. "Suhakam was present on site to monitor the situation and we noted that the authorities did not give the crowd proper warning or ample time to disperse (before taking action)," said Hasmy. More than 100 policemen and special branch personnel were reported to have cordoned off the area to deter the public from taking part in what police claimed was an illegal assembly. Hasmy said the police should practise non-violent methods of crowd control or dispersal, in the event that they...