No letting up: Some 3,000 Makkal Sakthi and Hindraf supporters call for release of ISA detainees
For one moment, it looked as if the general election campaign was not yet over. The orange shirts were back in numbers. A similar crowd had packed the Penang Chinese Town Hall in the run-up to the general election.
Makkal Sakthi is still alive and kicking – and the newfound sense of solidarity has not abated one bit.
But how was Hindraf, the organiser, able to get a permit so easily for this gathering? Well, I suppose it helps if your star speaker is the Penang Chief Minister! Not that permits should be required for such gatherings. A couple of uniformed cops sat in the audience, a couple more outside the hall.
Syed Ibrahim, the coordinator of the Abolish ISA Movement (GMI), gave a run-down on why the ISA had to be abolished. Also on stage was human rights lawyer Latheefa Koya. It has been a long time since I had seen such a huge crowd enthusiastically calling for the release of ISA detainees. In between, cries of Makkal Sakthi! and Valga! (Long live people power!) pierced the air.
Grand reception: ISA detainees’ family members enter the hall to a rousing welcome
How times have changed. If we want to look at it from a racial point of view, you had a Malay activist addressing a largely Indian crowd at the Chinese Town Hall!
The fear is gone: Young girls sign a petition calling for the release of ISA detainees as Fadiah from the GMI/Bar Council Human Rights Sub-committee beams
I don’t think I have seen so many people queuing up to sign petitions calling for the release of ISA detainees. (Some of these detainees have been held for more than six years!) Where previously people would have been afraid or reluctant to sign such petitions, tonight there was no such fear. People were distributing all sorts of anti-ISA literature. Volunteers collected donations for the ISA detainees’ families. Amazing! Surely, it can’t be too long before the ISA is totally abolished.
Crowd puller: Guan Eng is mobbed outside the hall by Makkal Sakthi and Hindraf supporters after giving the five state governments’ backing for the release of ISA detainees
It was an especially meaningful occasion for Guan Eng. Tonight was exactly 19 years to the day since he was released from ISA detention in 1989.
Guan Eng delighted the audience in the packed hall when he told them, “You are not alone in your call for the release of ISA detainees. You have five state governments backing this call and I will take this message to Parliament!” he said to loud applause. He told the crowd that the huge swing in their votes had made a big difference in the general election this time.
The entire gathering rose to their feet to cheer when a petition calling for the release of the ISA detainees was later handed over to the Chief Minister.
Later, after the event, I ran into a few pals, J, M and S, at a hawker centre. Politics was the hot topic. J wanted to take a bet (beers and kacang!) that Anwar would be Prime Minister by 1 Sept while S and M looked sceptical.
All three of them wanted the ISA abolished. But M and S said they would first like Mahathir to experience what it felt like to be unjustly detained in Kamunting and cut off from loved ones. “Just for six months and then we can abolish the ISA!” said S.
I looked at S. He was serious.
J and I, however, felt that this would be wrong. No one deserves to be detained without trial, not even Mahathir or whoever else has used this harsh and evil law. Everyone has the right to a fair trial.
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Hang Jebat, think carefully.
Do you know the meaning of “rule of law”? It means the rule of JUST AND FAIR laws. It also means that an accused person must be TOLD EXACTLY what he/she is accused of and the evidence produced in a COURT free of manipulation by the government.
Is this in line with or is this against the teachings of Islam? You can only answer honestly to yourself. May Allah guide you to the truth.
Firstly I believe that ISA is obsolete in its relevance in today’s world. The only reason the government would hold on to it is because they are incompetent to catch and convict a suspect. Hence, they rather impose ISA on a suspect than to gather the proper intelligence for a conviction of a crime.
If you have a look at the list of detainees and the charges against them, it is all ALLEGED.
Why not be open and make public the actual reason why they are detained in the first place? Are they saying that they have no proof on the alleged crimes of the detainees?
Abolishing ISA will not solve anybody’s problem. There are many more than the 5 Hindraf guys in ISA. Even India has tightened the POTA act. Why, there will always be guys with vested interests to undermine the country’s peace. So we need ISA. It easy for people to talk about the detainee’s children and wife situation, after being in ISA. In this blessed country, the Chinese are prospering.There are Indian workers from India who are paying 6-8k to agents come to work here to earn money. Blaming Umno/BN does not solve our Indians problem. What can we learn from the Chinese, Sikhs, Indian Muslims, Gujaratis who are not getting any gomen help nor crying about the situation.
You think PKR PAS are interested to help Indians? They just helped themselves in the last elections riding on the Hindraf created wave.
Creating a antagonastic attitude towards a majority community only invites a similar response. We simply don’t have the stength in economic power to dictate terms. Learn from Fiji, Uganda, Burma’s Indians experience. Don’t repeat it.
Think how with cooperation and collaboration, we can build a win win situation for everyone. What plans have Hindraf, Makkal Sakthi, DAP, MIC etc to improve the economic well being of the Indians? With the recession looming, the hardest hit will be Indians. It’s easy to arouse passion to hate, protest etc and create lasting divides. Ask what you can do to improve the Indians lot without blaming others for the situation Indians are in.
Dear anan duran,
Please do not use the term “we need ISA”. You are right blaming UMNO wont resolved the problems but purging them out.Yes the problems will be solved.
What can you improve the condition of Indians by detained the 5 Hindraf ? Chinese prosperous not because they are in blessed or cursed country. Don’t linked the Chinese when you talk about ISA.It seems like Chinese will lost all their monies if they don’t follows your advise. Chinese have brain, sorry to inform you.
Are you threatening the minority? Please bear in mind majority doesn’t like ISA. Plaese don’t talk about win win situation when there is still “you lose I win” game plan.
Are you really compassionate with the Indian community. why don’t you try this ISA food. Asked Theresa Kok. May be you are too prosperous with all the tasty food. Just Try it! I think you will like, weird species!
Anan Duran, by the manner of your statements you obviously have never been part of the ISA program. You should go thru it first before sending out your views.
Indians in many Afrikan nations prospered. Indians are prospering in USA, Europe, Australia, Canada … u left them out and concentrated on the areas they were mistreated. Have you been to these countries and talked to these people? U arent well traveled.
ISA allows a person to be detained WITHOUT TRIAL. There are other laws that allow a person to be detained WITH TRIAL. You obviously are not a lawyer. U dont know the law.
Mahatma Ghandi was just an old man, who lead an entire nation. Dont tell me we Indians dont have the strength in us. You are obviously a pessimist.
Cooperation and collaboration? What have we been doing the past 50 years? Fighting as guerrilas against the UMNO led BN govt? NO. We HAVE been cooperating and we HAVE been colaborating. It has got us NOWHERE! and created ppl like you.
To improve the Indian’s lot, we need regime change.