KUALA LUMPUR: PPP president Datuk M. Kayveas is in the eye of the storm for saying his party will leave the Barisan Nasional (BN) coalition if the Internal Security Act (ISA) is not amended by the time the 13th general election comes around.
Umno leaders take his statement as a threat and while some want him to take up the issue through “proper” BN channels, others have dared him to leave the BN now, calling PPP a mosquito party with no impact on national politics.
“I will not leave BN, I will stay in and fight for our rights,” Kayveas said in response. “We were original BN members and have every right to stay in BN and criticise it for the betterment of the people.”
“We want the ISA amended not repealed and the least Umno/BN can do is to consider what we say,” he said in an interview with The Malaysian Insider.
“I have suggested we meet on the issue half way and amend the law to ensure it is not misused against legitimate political opponents,” Kayveas said. “The people want the ISA modified or repealed, and we must respond to the demands.”
Kayveas said the party had thought deeply about the issue and will propose to the BN major changes to the ISA that would ensure that preventive detention is used only where necessary and against individuals or groups out to destroy the nation.
Among the changes the PPP is proposing is to let a judge of the High Court decide whether a person should be detained without trial.
“The police can make an arrest and produce the person immediately before a judge. Police can then produce the evidence to justify detention while the person or his lawyers rebut the accusations,” Kayveas said.
He said currently flimsy reasons are often offered for detaining a person and there is no independent assessment of the reason. “There is a need for a higher authority to independently assess the reasons for detention and rule whether a detention is required,” he said.
“Let the judge decide whether the person should be detained,” he said adding in this way the decision to detain is taken off the hands of police or the politicians, the two parties who have entrenched interest.
A judge can also decide the period of detention and order the release of the person when the reasons for continued detention do not exist.
As it stands now a detainee can be detained for two-years at a time and the period renewed indefinitely at the whim of interested parties.
He said nearly nine months after March 8, the BN has shown little signs of wanting to change and improve service, performance and governance.
“They are still in a deep state of denial and if this continues any longer it would be the end of the BN,” he said. “We are crossing the critical time period for change but there is hardly any willingness to change especially by Umno.”
“We still get unintelligent responses from the government and BN,” he said adding there is great despair among the BN component parties and the people in general over the failure to intelligently respond to the changed political landscape.
“It is now urgent to signal to the people that we BN can change and one of the best ways to do it is to amend the ISA and make it more transparent and accountable under a judge of the High Court,” he said.
Baradan Kuppusamy
The Malaysian Insider
02/12/08
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