Zaid Ibrahim's position on ISA must be opposed...

A lot of people have been praising Datuk Zaid Ibrahim...

He disagreed with the usage of the ISA to arrest Teresa Kok, Raja Petra and Tan - and for that reason he quit his Ministerial post - and that is great and praiseworthy. (Most members of the Cabinet would just sit by silently despite being opposed to the usage of the ISA - not even coming out publicly on their opposition, ...and certainly not tendering his resignation in protest....)

BUT be very careful because Datuk Zaid Ibrahim supports Detention Without Trial - he is OK with the ISA.

The Internal Security Act (ISA) should not be used against civilians, de facto law minister Datuk Zaid Ibrahim said.

The Act should only be used against terrorists or those trying to topple the Government by force, the Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department said at a press conference at his home here on Sunday.

He was commenting on the arrests of three people -- Seputeh MP Teresa Kok, Malaysia Today editor Raja Petra Kama­rudin and Sin Chew Daily reporter Tan Hoon Cheng -- under the ISA.

...Zaid said it was time for the Federal Government to revert to the original spirit of the ISA, which was enacted to curb Communism and today should be used only on armed terrorists or those out to topple the Government by force.

“I am not calling for a repeal of the ISA, but it should only be use when there is a real threat to national security, such as armed terrorists, and not on civilians,” he said. - Star, 14/9/2008, Wrong use of ISA: De facto law minister (update 3)

Now, let us look at what the ISA can be used for .... and note that all it requires is for the Minister to be satisfied - and that Minister today is our Home Minister Syed Hamid Albar..

‘If the Minister is satisfied that the detention of any person is necessary with a view to preventing him from acting in any manner prejudicial to the security of Malaysia or any part thereof or to the maintenance of essential services therein or to the economic life thereof, he may make an order (hereinafter referred to as a detention order) directing that that person be detained for any period not exceeding two years’. (s 8(1) Internal Security Act 1960)

And let it also be known that nowadays, we cannot anymore go to court to ask the court to review the decision of the Minister - to see if there is any real justification for the 'Minister's satisfaction' that resulted in the detention...

Recently, our PM, who said that ISA is good, talked about the possibility of ISA arrest....

The premier issued a warning that appear to indicate the possibility of an ISA arrest for the maverick politician at press conference at Putrajaya this afternoon to announce a reshuffle of cabinet portfolios.

'He has become a threat to the economy and possibly (national) security," he said.

This in itself provides sufficient grounds for the authorities to invoke the tough security law, which provides detention without trial against Anwar.

And when asked what action the government would take against him, Abdullah refused to reveal his cards, saying: "I will not indicate what plan I will take, what I do will be in the best interests of the people and the country."

"Because of Anwar's actions, there are fund managers who have reported that Malaysia is purportedly no longer a good place for investment because of the unstable political climate."

Abdullah said the opposition leader has lied a lot about the country's economic status, even claiming that there is no Foreign Direct Investments (FDI) coming in. - Malaysiakini, 17/9/2008, Another round of ISA for Anwar?

Look at who is there in the detention centres - 'civilians' who the Minister is satisfied should be detained under the ISA..
- Alleged member of "Darul Islam Sabah"
- Alleged foreign agent
- Alleged JI member
- HINDRAF - must be alleged something as well..

So, let us see what they can use for Anwar, the Pakatan Rakyat MPs, the others fighting for change...
- acting in any manner prejudicial to the security of Malaysia (under the ISA)
- acting in any manner prejudicial to the economic life of Malaysia (under the ISA)

What if we want to use the Emergency Ordinance...

‘If the Minister is satisfied that with a view to preventing any person from acting in any manner prejudicial to public order it is necessary that that person should be detained, or that it is necessary for the suppression of violence or the prevention of crimes involving violence that that person should be detained, the Minister shall make an order (hereinafter referred to as a ‘detention order’) directing that that person be detained for a period not exceeding two years’. (s 4(1) Emergency (Public Order And Prevention of Crime) Ordinance 1969)

I hope you see how BROAD it is - and it is so open to abuse... and we cannot agree with Zaid Ibrahim who wants to keep the ISA - we have to say REPEAL all Detention Without Trials and release everyone now being detained under the Detention Without Trial Laws...

Recently, I came across an Online Petition addressed to the Prime Minister - I saw it in Charles Santiago's Blog [http://votecharles.wordpress.com/]---when you start reading it, it really looks OK --- BUT BEWARE because it also says keep the ISA....

"We agree with his view that “there [are] ample punitive laws to act against lawbreakers without having to invoke the ISA. [The law] should only be used on armed terrorists or those out to topple the government by force,”

I do not believe that Pakatan Rakyat Klang MP Charles Santiago would support or sign this petition once he had the time to read it completely - I know him, and he is a good man.

So, do me a favour warn everyone about this Petition - and tell them that by signing such a petition you are also saying OK to Detention Without Trial --- OK to the ISA....

The said Petition, which also supports ISA, starts off like this ....

Please sign the petition and forward to your friends.

To: Prime Minister of Malaysia

We, citizens and friends of Malaysia from the international community, call upon Dato’ Seri Abdullah bin Haji Ahmad Badawi, Prime Minister of Malaysia, to act immediately to set free Raja Petra Kamaruddin and Teresa Kok who are presently being held in detention without the right of due process under the Internal Security Act (ISA). We also call for the release of the HINDRAF Five and others presently imprisoned under the ISA.

The two latest detainees - together with Tan Hoon Cheng, a newspaper reporter who was subsequently released following widespread local outrage and protests...

DO NOT SIGN THIS PETITION UNLESS YOU SUPPORT THE ISA AND DETENTION WITHOUT TRIAL...