Police, are we really your guests?

Last Sunday, August 1, 2010, what was intended to be a peaceful candlelight vigil to commemorate the Internal Security Act’s (ISA) 50^th anniversary at the Dataran MBPJ became a ‘brutal’ crowd dispersal by Malaysian riot police.

That evening, many activists who had gathered at Dataran MBPJ, Padang Timur in Petaling Jaya, Selangor to mark their protest, in a peaceful manner, of this deemed draconian law had to take cover at the nearby Amcorp shopping mall from the police force.

The policemen were also seen rushing into the shopping mall to pull out people, thus breaking the peace even in the mall.

Those arrested were taken to the nearby Petaling Jaya district police headquarters.

Many of those arrested claimed to have been “shoved, beaten, slapped, dragged, choked and verbally abused” while being detained by the police. A total of 29 people were arrested in Petaling Jaya – eight women and 21 men, including the three people who were arrested outside the police headquarters when they came to meet those arrested at Dataran MBPJ and Amcorp.

It was only by 4.30am Monday, Aug 2, 2010 when the last of those arrested were released, one-by-one, under police bail. Those arrested were ordered to attend the PJ Magistrate court at 9.00am on August 16, 2010, and not report back to this district police headquarters.

In an attempt to add insult to injury, several traffic policemen from this district headquarters also summoned the vehicles of people who waited for those arrested. This work-of-summons was being done several times till after 3.30am. Those whose vehicles were summoned included several of the Members of Parliament, Selangor State Assemblypersons and MBPJ councilors.

Sivarasa Rasiah, who is Subang MP, together with Ronnie Liu, a Selangor State EXCO member & Pandamaran State Assemblyperson, both felt this further aggravations and provocations were unnecessary and hold ACP Arjunaidi Mohamed, the Petaling Jaya district police chief responsible for these intimidations.

“BE OUR GUEST” (Selamat Datang. ANDA ADALAH TETAMU KAMI). These words were explicitly displayed at the signboard at the district headquarters.

A sincere question to the Malaysian Police, “Are we really your guests”?

An MBPJ councilor, Chan Chee Kong undertook to verify the permissibility of the inclusion of details of a motor repair company on the signboard at the police headquarters which also administers a traffic police station.

Video by R. Vijay Kumar, Citizen Journalist.