ANOTHER EXTRAJUDICIAL KILLING BY MALAYSIAN POLICE?
On the eve of Malaysia's Independence Day, another person has been reported shot dead, rather than been arrested by the Malaysian police...
Selangor police chief Datuk Hussein Omar Khan said the shootout happened at 9.33pm[30/8/2024] when the suspect refused to stop after being told to by police and instead fired shots at officers from Bukit Aman’s Criminal Investigation Department (CID)..Police fired shots back and the suspect was confirmed to have died at the location.
A DISTURBING TREND EMERGING ...
- Usually involve a 'specialized' police team, unclear whether they were in uniform and in easily identifiable police cars, - not the NORMAL 2 man police car patrols operating within their own police district???
- Allegation that police ordered the suspect/s(in vehicles) to stop but they did not and started shooting - and the response by the police kills them.
- Police response, usually hours after the killing, paint the deceased victim of a 'BAD person' with 'criminal records', etc
- No police officer has yet been charged in court for the killings [Interestingly, one Coroner and one High Court have found the police version of what transpired to be 'FALSE' - but despite that no police officers have been charged.
- Police have NO RIGHT to KILL - only arrest, so if they end up killing someone, they should be CHARGED in Court, and it is up to court(not the police or any other) to determine whether they are guilty of MURDER or Culpable Homicide, and whether the police has any "DEFENCE' including SELF-DEFENCE, etc >>>
See Joint Statement of 18 Groups below - in response to an extrajudicial killing on 13/8/2024
See also MADPET's Media statement in response to another extrajudicial killing on 20/8/2024..
Thus, in AUGUST 2024 - we have 3 media reported extrajudicial killings >> there could be MORE. It is a SERIOUS issue that can no longer be ignored.
Media Statement – 25/8/2024
SUHAKAM and Parliament Must Investigate Whether Extrajudicial Killings Are ‘Planned’ Murders with no intention of arresting anyone alive and matters related to improve public perception of law enforcement
Malaysia must adopt the UN Principles on the Effective Prevention and Investigation of Extra-legal, Arbitrary and Summary Executions
A perusal of recent incidents where persons have been shot dead, and NOT arrested as required, discloses that the police officers involved were not the normal police units, who normally patrol in marked police cars with 2 persons or on motorcycle patrol units, but rather ‘special’ teams, sometimes involving police officers from outside the relevant police district. This raises questions whether these shooting incidents were chance encounters by normal police patrol or not.
Some of the more recent media reported extrajudicial killing incidents, whereby, according to reports, none of the alleged suspects were shot and arrested, is as follows:
· On 20/8/2024 incident, one person shot dead at the entry to the Sungai Balak Toll on the Kajang Dispersal Link Expressway (SILK) near Kajang, Selangor. It was a Bukit Aman Criminal Investigation team. (BERNAMA. 20/8/2024);
· On 13/8/2024, a man was shot dead at the entry to the Sungai Balak Toll on the Kajang Dispersal Link Expressway (SILK) near Kajang, Selangor. A team from the Bukit Aman Criminal Investigation Department was involved (The Sun, 13/8/2024);
· On 14/6/2024 incident, 2 were killed in Johor Baru, and it was ‘a joint federal-state police Criminal Investigation Department (CID) team, consisting of operatives from the Organised Crime Investigation Division (D14) and Serious Crimes Division (D9)’ team(Malay Mail, 15/6/2024);
· On 1/6/2020, 2 were shot dead at kilometre 396.5 of the North-South Highway (PLUS) at the Tanjung Malim layby, Perak. A team of police officers from the Bukit Aman Criminal Investigation Department (CID) together with the CID Division of the Perak police contingent headquarters was involved. (Malay Mail, 2/6/2024); and
· On 29/3/2024 incident, 5 were shot dead in Putra Heights, Kuala Lumpur, and it was a police team that was involved. (Malay Mail, 30/3/2024)
One common thread that emerges was it was all NOT ‘normal’ police officers, but was a ‘special’ TEAM, amongst others, from Bukit Aman Criminal Investigation team, Bukit Aman Criminal Investigation Department, ‘a joint federal-state police Criminal Investigation Department (CID) team, consisting of operatives from the Organised Crime Investigation Division (D14) and Serious Crimes Division (D9)’, and Bukit Aman Criminal Investigation Department (CID) together with the CID Division of the Perak police contingent headquarters. Such ‘special teams’ normally will not be involved in normal police patrols, but are usually discharged for a very specific purpose.
The story or the police narrative is too similar in cases where police shot dead suspects, following a story that some suspicious vehicle failed to stop despite being asked to by the police, the occupant/s allegedly opened fire and the police shot back and the suspects were killed. No one in such encounters with the police gets shot and arrested alive, or just arrested unhurt.
Another similarity that emerges, is the story that the deceased victims are ‘bad people’ and have committed crimes. Remember, in Malaysia, only the Courts decide on the guilt or innocence, and the sentence.
This trend raises serious questions about our police force. Was the encounter with the said suspect/s coincidental or planned? What is of concern is also whether there was any intention to arrest at all? Did the police follow the LAW?
Malaysian law clearly states that the police must arrest suspects, and cannot kill. If the police encounter results in death, then the said police officers should be charged in court for murder or culpable homicide, and ONLY the courts will decide whether any of the defence the police may have will succeed.
We also do not then hear the result of the Coroner’s inquiry, and news that these police officers have been investigated and charged in court for the killing, which is an extrajudicial killing.
What is happening affects the public perception of the police force, and the problem lies in the lack of transparency, and news of actions against those police officers involved in these killings. Disciplinary action ONLY is not enough – Charge them in court.
Note that ‘…An order from a superior officer or a public authority may not be invoked as a justification for extra-legal, arbitrary or summary executions…’ (UN Principles on the Effective Prevention and Investigation of Extra-legal, Arbitrary and Summary Executions). A police officer ordered to shoot to kill, not arrest, must and can defy orders from superiors.
In case of custodial torture, the Court of Appeal said this ‘…When a police officer, be he of whatever rank, is found guilty of assaulting a member of the public and more so of an arrested person as in this case, the courts should send a message of the public abhorrence of such acts - by coming down hard on him and nothing short of a custodial sentence, even for a first offender, would suffice…’.(Tan Sri Abdul Rahim Mohd Noor v. PP).The same applies to police officers involved in extrajudicial killings.
MADPET calls on SUHAKAM(Human Rights Commission of Malaysia), Parliament and/or an independent Royal Commissions of Inquiry to look into these extrajudicial killings by police in depth to dispel concerns of pre-planned ‘killings’ with no intention to arrest, abuse of power or other unlawfulness.
MADPET calls on the governments to prohibit by law all extra-legal, arbitrary and summary executions and shall ensure that any such executions are recognized as offences under their criminal laws, and are punishable by appropriate penalties which take into account the seriousness of such offences, as per the UN Principles on the Effective Prevention and Investigation of Extra-legal, Arbitrary and Summary Executions.
MADPET reiterates the concerns and calls in the 18 Groups Joint Statement dated 19/8/2024 entitled, ‘Criminalize extrajudicial killing, and charge law enforcement officers involved in the killing in Court, for it is Court that decides guilt and whether any defence including self defence will succeed’(A copy of the statement is attached).
The police and law enforcement must follow the law, and should not torture or KILL anyone. Malaysia must have a CLEAN and law abiding law enforcement.
Charles Hector
For and on behalf of MADPET(Malaysians Against Death Penalty and Torture)
Joint Media Statement(18 Groups) – 19/8/2024
Criminalize extrajudicial killing, and charge law enforcement officers involved in the killing in Court, for it is Court that decides guilt and whether any defence including self defence will succeed
We, the 18 undersigned groups and organizations is appalled at yet another extrajudicial killing by Malaysian police that happened on 13/8/2024(The Sun), whereby immediately after that the public is fed with the police version of what happened in an attempt to absolve the police from guilt, and with allegations that the deceased was a ‘bad person’. Was there even sufficient time for the police to conduct a proper investigation into the killing? Were the police officers in uniform or in a easily identifiable police vehicle?
In cases of extrajudicial killing, it is the police that caused the killing who should be investigated for the crime of murder and culpable homicide, not the deceased.
However, it must be noted that there have been several cases in Malaysia, where the police version of what happened was found to be LIES.
Police Version Of What Happened Found To Be False
The High Court in Ipoh on 1/2/2024 set aside an open verdict delivered in an inquest involving a police shooting in Sitiawan, Perak nearly eight years ago, and ruled it to be a homicide. "This court, under the Chief Justice’s Direction No 2 of 2019, makes a finding of homicide against the police," he[Judicial commissioner Moses Susayan] said..’ The police and prosecution version were that Mohan got out of the vehicle and fired at the policemen, forcing them to shoot back. However, there were ‘…no bullet casing from the purported revolver used by Mohan was found. Neither were fingerprints, DNA or gunshot residue found on the alleged gun or the deceased. The Inspector-General’s Standing Orders that requires police to fire warning shots and to shoot at the leg was probably not followed. (FMT)
On 31/5/2023 that the coroner’s court, presided by Coroner Rasyihah Ghazali, for ‘police shooting that resulted in death of 3, ‘…. concluded that there was abuse of power and elements of a criminal nature in the death of three men who were shot at close range by police three years ago. “The shots were not fired in self-defense. There was abuse of power and (actions in the nature of) criminal elements by police in the death of the men,”… She said police witnesses gave evidence that shots were fired at the men from an upright position but post-mortem reports stated that the bullets pierced their bodies at a downward angle. … “The weapons described by the ballistic expert (Izzuwan Marzuki) and the investigating officer (P Visvanathan) were also in conflict,” (FMT, 31/5/2023)
We sadly note that there has been no news about the said police personnel found criminally liable for the killing being investigated and/or charged in the courts, despite the findings of the Coroner and/or the Court.
End Perception that Malaysia Protects Law Enforcement Who Broke the Law
The perception that Malaysia protects police and law enforcement officers from criminal prosecution must end. This is not a matter to be dealt with through internal disciplinary actions – but requires the suspected police officers to be charged and tried in Court.
Sadly, in most of these extrajudicial killings, we do not hear about the findings of the Independent Coroner, who is legally the person who will enquire and determine the cause of death, including whether any person, including the police, was criminally liable for the death. Hence, we only have the police version of what happened issued hours after the killing.
The Home Minister must disclose the findings of the Coroner’s Inquiry of all cases of extrajudicial killing by law enforcement. He must explain why the police have not been charged in court for the crime of killing. Whether, the police’s defence of ‘self defence’ will succeed is something for the Court to decide – not the police, the prosecution, the Minister or the government of the day.
Coroner must investigate immediately, and decide fast
In cases of police killing that we hear about the Coroner’s findings, it is simply too long after the said killing occurred. In cases of extrajudicial killings and deaths in custody of law enforcement, Coroners must speedily inquire into the death and render a decision as fast as possible, preferably within a month, not after years. Coroners must not only rely on the police for evidence, but also do their own independent investigations as the police do ‘lie’ at times to maybe protect their own officers.
Police are the suspects – not the deceased
In extrajudicial killings, the suspects of the crime is the POLICE, not the deceased. It is the police suspects that need to be investigated, and not the deceased. It was odd, that a media report stated that the police had commenced an investigation ‘…under the Penal Code for attempted murder’. Are they investigating the deceased, for if they are investigating the police, it should be an investigation for murder, not attempted murder since the victim died. (NST, 13/8/2024)
Extrajudicial Killings Must Be Criminalized – An offence and a deterrent penalty
Extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions – is the deliberate killing of individuals outside of any legal framework - are a violation of this most fundamental right. In Malaysia, the Federal Constitution acknowledges the right to life, and in Article 5(1) states that ‘No person shall be deprived of his life …. save in accordance with law’ and this means that the State or its officers can generally only kill someone after he has been tried, convicted and sentenced to death. When it comes to the police, their duty is merely to arrest and investigate suspects – not kill them.
Malaysian law, on arrest is very clear and right to kill is limited to persons who have already been charged in court, being the time, a suspect becomes an accused, for an offence that carries the death penalty or sentence of imprisonment of 30 years or more.
Section 15 of the Criminal Procedure Code, amongst others, state that ‘…(2) If such person forcibly resist the endeavour to arrest him or attempt to evade the arrest such officer or other person may use all means necessary to effect the arrest.(3) Nothing in this section gives a right to cause the death of a person who is not accused of an offence punishable with death or with imprisonment for a term of not less than thirty years but not exceeding forty years or with imprisonment for life.’
In all the known cases, those that end up being shot dead are certainly not accused persons facing trial for such serious offences.
Malaysia must enact a law making extra-judicial killing by law enforcement a crime with a deterrent penalty, as the killers in these cases are public officers responsible for law enforcement, who should never ignore the law and kill suspects, witnesses or others during the performance of their duties. The fact that we have murder and other killing offences in the law is insufficient, and the criminalizing of extrajudicial killings also will indicate Malaysia’s strong position against such killings.
First response by Home Minister is to APOLOGIZE and ensure proper investigation
After anyone is killed whilst making arrest or in police custody, the Home Minister Saifuddin Nasution Ismail first response should be to apologize for the death of any suspect. No one during arrest, custody and investigations by law enforcement should die.
He should also commit to an immediate independent investigation and for a speedy Coroner’s inquiry to determine the truth of what really happened. Was there any acceptable legal defence for the killing of persons by the police? In any case, the police personnel involved should be investigated and charged, and it is up to the Court to determine whether any defence, including self-defence will succeed in avoiding conviction.
The Minister is responsible for the police, but that does not translate that he should always come out in defence of police actions and/or ‘justifying’ possible criminal wrongdoings, trusting the police version of the facts.
On the face of it, the police broke the law when they failed to arrest a suspect alive.
Hence, as Minister responsible, he must come out expressing his remorse for what happened, and commit to a thorough investigation to determine the truth. He must also make sure that the police do not try to prematurely justify killings on the basis that the deceased was a ‘bad person’. He must leave the determination of guilt to the Courts.
It is not for the police to decide whether one is a criminal or not, or whether they deceive the death sentence. They are not ‘judge, jury and executioner’ – the police is NOT ‘a person or group who has unchecked power to make decisions, impose punishments, and carry out those punishments without due process or oversight.’
Therefore, we call
Call for the criminalization of extrajudicial killing, making it a crime with a deterrent penalty;
Call on Malaysia to adopt the Principles on the Effective Prevention and Investigation of Extra-legal, Arbitrary and Summary Executions, as rrecommended by the United Nation’s Economic and Social Council resolution 1989/65 of 24 May 1989, which, amongst others, state that ‘Governments shall prohibit by law all extra-legal, arbitrary and summary executions and shall ensure that any such executions are recognized as offences under their criminal laws, and are punishable by appropriate penalties which take into account the seriousness of such offences…’
Call on the Home Minister to disclose findings of the Coroner in all cases of extra-judicial killings in Malaysia, and explain why the said police officers or law enforcement personnel have NOT been charged and tried in Court for the said killings.
Call on Malaysia to end the ‘defamation’ of the dead, as an attempt to ‘justify’ the killings by law enforcement.
Call for the police officers responsible for the death of suspects and others be charged and tried in Court, for it is Court only that determines guilt, and whether any defence for the said crime including self-defence is accepted.
Charles Hector
Ng Yap Hwa
For and on behalf of the 18 groups listed below
ALIRAN
MADPET (Malaysians Against Death Penalty and Torture)
Teoh Beng Hock Association for Democratic Advancement
WH4C (Workers Hub For Change)
Anti-Death Penalty Asia Network (ADPAN)
Association Of Home And Maquila Workers (ATRAHDOM), Guatemala
Banglar Manabadhikar Suraksha Mancha (MASUM), India
Citizens Against Enforced Disappearances (CAGED)
Democratic Commission for Human Development, Lahore, Pakistan
Global Women’s Strike, United Kingdom
Legal Action for Women, United Kingdom
Programme Against Custodial Torture & Impunity (PACTI), India
Redemption, Pakistan
Sabah Timber Industry Employees Union (STIEU)
Union of Domestic, Maquila, Nexas and Related Workers (SITRADOM), Guatemala
Yaung Chi Oo Workers’ Association (YCOWA)
Gerakan Belia Sepunjabi Malaysia
Persatuan Sahabat Wanita Selangor (PSWS)
See also:-
When police shoot and kill - Minister must apologize and Charge the police killers in court - Let Court decide on guilt or defence. Criminalize extrajudicial killing(with deterent sentence) - A Statement of 18 Groups
Cops kill man with 16 criminal records in Rawang shootout (VIDEO)
KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 31 — A man with 16 criminal records was shot dead during a police shootout at Jalan Bandar Bukit Beruntung in Rawang on Thursday night.
Selangor police chief Datuk Hussein Omar Khan said the shootout happened at 9.33pm when the suspect refused to stop after being told to by police and instead fired shots at officers from Bukit Aman’s Criminal Investigation Department (CID), according to Malay news outlet Sinar Harian in a report published today.
Police fired shots back and the suspect was confirmed to have died at the location.
“The
Selangor police contingent confirmed the incident,” said Hussein in a
statement on Friday, adding that the suspect was a 36-year-old local man
with 16 criminal and drug records.
He said the investigation is being conducted under Section 307 of the Penal Code and Section 8 of the Firearms Act 1960.
Hussein added that members of the public with any additional information regarding the incident are urged to come forward to the police station or contact the Hulu Selangor District Police Headquarters (IPD).- Malay Mail, 31/8/2024
Investigate if extrajudicial killings of criminals are ‘planned’ murders instead – Charles Hector
String of cases where special police teams, and not regular patrol units, shoot dead alleged criminals, must be investigated by Suhakam, Parliament or even a royal commission of inquiry
A PERUSAL of recent incidents where persons have been shot dead, and not arrested as required, discloses that the police officers involved were not the normal police units, who normally patrol in marked police cars with two persons or on motorcycle patrol units, but rather “special” teams, sometimes involving police officers from outside the relevant police district. This raises questions whether these shooting incidents were chance encounters by normal police patrols or not.
Some of the more recent media reported extrajudicial killing incidents, whereby, according to reports, none of the alleged suspects were shot and arrested, are as follows:
– In an incident on August 20, 2024 incident, one person was shot dead at the entry to the Sg Balak Toll Plaza on the Kajang Dispersal Link Expressway (SILK) near Kajang, Selangor. It was a Bukit Aman criminal investigation team. (Bernama, August 20, 2024);
– On August 13, 2024, a man was shot dead at the entry to the Sg Balak Toll Plaza on SILK near Kajang, Selangor. A team from the Bukit Aman criminal investigation department (CID) was involved (The Sun, August 13, 2024);
– In an incident on August 14, 2024, two were killed in Johor Bahru, and it was “a joint federal-state police CID team, consisting of operatives from the organised crime investigation division (D14) and serious crimes division (D9)” (Malay Mail, August 15, 2024);
– On August 6, 2020, two were shot dead at KM396.5 of the North-South Highway at the Tg Malim lay-by, Perak. A team of police officers from the Bukit Aman CID together with the CID division of the Perak police contingent headquarters was involved. (Malay Mail, June 2, 2024); and
– In an incident on March 29, 2024, five were shot dead in Putra Heights, Kuala Lumpur, and it was a police team that was involved. (Malay Mail, March 30, 2024)
One common thread that emerges was it was all not “normal” police officers, but a “special” team.
These special teams comprised the Bukit Aman criminal investigation team, Bukit Aman CID, joint federal-state police CID team consisting of operatives from the organised crime investigation division (D14) and serious crimes division (D9), and Bukit Aman CID together with the CID division of the Perak police contingent headquarters.
Such “special teams” normally will not be involved in normal police patrols, but are usually discharged for a very specific purpose.
The story or the police narrative is too similar in cases where police shot dead the suspects because a suspicious vehicle failed to stop despite being asked to by police. Or that the occupant/s allegedly opened fire and police shot back and the suspects were killed.
No one in such encounters with police was shot and arrested alive, or just arrested unhurt.
Another similarity that emerges is the narrative that the deceased victims are “bad people” and have committed crimes. Remember, in Malaysia, only the courts decide on guilt or innocence, and the sentence.
This trend raises serious questions about our police force. Was the encounter with the said suspect/s coincidental or planned? What is of concern is also whether there was any intention to arrest at all. Did police follow the law?
Malaysian law clearly states that police must arrest suspects, and cannot kill. If a police encounter results in death, then the said police officers should be charged in court with murder or culpable homicide, and only the courts will decide whether any of the defences the police force may have will succeed.
We also do not hear the result of the coroner’s inquiry into these fatal shootings, nor of news that these police officers have been investigated and charged in court for the extrajudicial killing.
What is happening affects the public perception of the police force, and the problem lies in the lack of transparency. There is no news of actions against those police officers involved in these killings. Disciplinary action alone is not enough – they should be charged in court.
The United Nations’ Principles on the Effective Prevention and Investigation of Extra-legal, Arbitrary and Summary Executions state: “… An order from a superior officer or a public authority may not be invoked as a justification for extra-legal, arbitrary or summary executions…”.
A police officer ordered to shoot to kill, not arrest, must and can defy orders from superiors.
In case of custodial torture, the Court of Appeal in Tan Sri Abdul Rahim Mohd Noor v PP has said this: “When a police officer, be he of whatever rank, is found guilty of assaulting a member of the public and more so of an arrested person as in this case, the courts should send a message of the public abhorrence of such acts – by coming down hard on him and nothing short of a custodial sentence, even for a first offender, would suffice…”.
The same applies to police officers involved in extrajudicial killings.
Madpet calls Suhakam, Parliament and/or an independent royal commission of inquiry to look into these extrajudicial killings by police in depth to dispel concerns of pre-planned “killings” with no intention to arrest, abuse of power or other unlawfulness.
Madpet calls on the government to prohibit by law all extra-legal, arbitrary and summary executions and shall ensure that any such executions are recognized as offences under their criminal laws, and are punishable by appropriate penalties which take into account the seriousness of such offences, as per the UN Principles on the Effective Prevention and Investigation of Extra-legal, Arbitrary and Summary Executions.
Madpet eiterates the concerns and calls in the 18 Groups Joint Statement dated August 19, 2024, entitled “Criminalize extrajudicial killing, and charge law enforcement officers involved in the killing in Court, for it is Court that decides guilt and whether any defence including self defence will succeed”.
Police and law enforcement must follow the law, and should not torture or kill anyone. Malaysia must have a clean and law-abiding law enforcement. – August 25, 2024
Charles Hector is a human rights activist with Malaysians Against Death Penalty and Torture (Madpet) - Scoop Malaysia, 25/8/2024
Civil Society
Civil society groups demand criminalization of extrajudicial killings in Malaysia
A coalition of 18 civil society groups in Malaysia demands the criminalization of extrajudicial killings by police and the prosecution of involved officers. The groups call for transparency, faster coroner’s inquiries, and an end to the practice of justifying such killings by vilifying the deceased.
A coalition of 18 civil society organizations in Malaysia has issued a joint statement demanding the criminalization of extrajudicial killings by law enforcement officers and the prosecution of those responsible. The call comes in response to the recent killing of a suspect by Malaysian police on 13 August 2024, an incident the groups describe as yet another instance of extrajudicial killing.
The statement, signed by prominent groups such as ALIRAN, MADPET (Malaysians Against Death Penalty and Torture), and the Anti-Death Penalty Asia Network (ADPAN), expresses deep concern over the immediate dissemination of the police’s version of events, which they allege serves to absolve the officers involved and vilify the deceased. The groups question whether the police had sufficient time to conduct a proper investigation into the killing before making public statements, and whether the officers involved were easily identifiable as law enforcement at the time of the incident.
The statement highlights several cases where the police’s accounts of fatal shootings were later found to be false.
One such case occurred in Sitiawan, Perak, where the Ipoh High Court overturned an inquest’s open verdict and ruled that the death of a suspect shot by police was a homicide. Similarly, in another incident, the coroner’s court found evidence of abuse of power and criminal elements in the police’s actions during a fatal shooting that resulted in three deaths.
Despite these findings, the groups lament that there has been no news of criminal investigations or charges brought against the police officers involved in these cases. They argue that the perception that Malaysia protects law enforcement officers from criminal prosecution must end, and that such cases should not be handled solely through internal disciplinary actions but require prosecution in court.
The coalition also criticizes the prolonged delays in coroner’s inquiries, calling for faster investigations and decisions. They emphasize that in cases of extrajudicial killings, the police officers involved should be treated as suspects and investigated for murder, rather than focusing on the deceased. The statement notes that the law clearly limits the use of lethal force by law enforcement, and that extrajudicial killings should be explicitly criminalized with deterrent penalties.
Furthermore, the groups call on Home Minister Saifuddin Nasution Ismail to take responsibility by apologizing for any deaths occurring during police operations and ensuring thorough and independent investigations. They insist that it is the role of the courts, not the police, to determine guilt and whether any defense, such as self-defense, is valid.
The coalition also urges Malaysia to adopt the United Nations’ Principles on the Effective Prevention and Investigation of Extra-Legal, Arbitrary, and Summary Executions, and to end the practice of defaming the deceased as a means of justifying unlawful killings by law enforcement.
The statement concludes with a call for transparency and accountability, demanding that the findings of coroner’s inquiries into all cases of extrajudicial killings be disclosed and that law enforcement officers responsible for such deaths be charged and tried in court.
The full list of signatories includes:
- ALIRAN
- MADPET (Malaysians Against Death Penalty and Torture)
- Teoh Beng Hock Association for Democratic Advancement
- WH4C (Workers Hub For Change)
- Anti-Death Penalty Asia Network (ADPAN)
- Association Of Home And Maquila Workers (ATRAHDOM), Guatemala
- Banglar Manabadhikar Suraksha Mancha (MASUM), India
- Citizens Against Enforced Disappearances (CAGED)
- Democratic Commission for Human Development, Lahore, Pakistan
- Global Women’s Strike, United Kingdom
- Legal Action for Women, United Kingdom
- Programme Against Custodial Torture & Impunity (PACTI), India
- Redemption, Pakistan
- Sabah Timber Industry Employees Union (STIEU)
- Union of Domestic, Maquila, Nexas and Related Workers (SITRADOM), Guatemala
- Yaung Chi Oo Workers’ Association (YCOWA)
- Gerakan Belia Sepunjabi Malaysia
- Persatuan Sahabat Wanita Selangor (PSWS)