Media Statement
How Not to Win Friends and Influence People: BN Resorts to ISA again
The arrests of 10 alleged members of the Malaysian Mujahidin Group under the Internal Security Act has further revealed the Barisan Nasional government's inability to understand the nature of Malaysia's current political ferment.
First, there were the ISA arrests in April of 10 reformasi activists for allegedly planning to topple the government through violent means - which included the use of molotov cocktails and rocket launchers. But not a shred of evidence has been produced. Six of the detainees are now languishing in the Kamunting Detention Centre.
Next came the clampdown and intimidation of university student leaders, two of whom were detained under the ISA. They too were going to topple the government. The Prime Minister also blamed the "militant students" for the Dewan Tunku Canselor fire before the cause of the blaze could even be established. For good measure, the authorities also blamed Black Metal influence and VCD peddlers for corrupting the youth and implicitly undermining confidence in the BN government.
The ban on ceramahs appears aimed at cutting off yet another of the few remaining avenues for dissenting views to be communicated to the people. The ban on public sales of CDs and VCDs will also prevent opposition parties from reaching out to the public.
The latest of these repressive measures is the arrest of 10 individuals for supposedly belonging to an "Islamic militant (Mujahidin) group whose activities could undermine national security" - a familiar refrain.
Without doubt, the BN government appears to be on a rampage. It seems to be resorting to the ISA and other repressive means to stem dwindling public support for the ruling coalition. All sorts of unsubstantiated accusations to justify its actions have been hurled.
The BN badly needs to do some serious soul-searching to find out why there is so much disillusionment and dissatisfaction among the public. It must immediately release all ISA detainees or charge them in open court if there is any shred of evidence of any crime. It should stop vilifying students and the youth. It should heed Suhakam's recommendations on public assemblies and other issues related to human rights instead of dismissing its views outright.
Perhaps only then will it be able to succeed in winning friends and influencing people.
Aliran Executive Committee
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Unable to stem its irrelevance and eroding popularity, it has resorted to a variety of heavy-handed and even clumsy clampdowns against concerned citizens who are not necessarily opposition supporters but who are nonetheless seeking a more democratic and just society governed by the rule of law. This quest for participatory democracy and responsible government can be found all around us. Yet, there are those who have eyes, but do not see. Worse, they only know how to resort to archaic knee-jerk responses to suppress such yearnings.