As expected, charges were levelled against the PSM 6 this morning, but what caught the attention of the packed courtroom in Butterworth was the indomitable spirit displayed by the six.
Far from being crushed by the latest obstacle to their work, the six and their supporters vowed to redouble their commitment to their work. They seemed genuinely awed by the level of support their cause had received from the public locally and even internationally.
Speaking outside court, Dr Jeyakumar said the authorities are shooting themselves in the foot by taking the latest course of action. “By their actions, they have given us more publicity in one month than we could ever have hoped to achieve in four years – not that we are enjoying this ordeal,” said Kumar.
Evidence of this could be seen in the way a horde of reporters mobbed the six, their cameras flashing and pens scribbling down every word uttered. Little known political activists had been transformed into household names.
Bail of RM8000 had to be posted for each of the six – just like the other PSM 24. Bailers had to go to a bank nearby and obtain fixed deposit certificates – which were then lodged in court.
To recap, 31 people were on the bus that was stopped on that fateful afternoon of 25 July near the Sungai Dua toll plaza. The co-driver was released. The remaining 30 were detained included the bus driver and his son. And out of the 30 detained, three were below 18 and were accompanying their fathers.
Once again, lawyers C V Prabhakaran, Agatha Foo, Karen Lai and other legal aid lawyers were present to assist the six.
After the morning’s proceedings, a mysterious well-wisher treated the crowd to economy rice at a nearby restaurant – just another example of how so many people have reached out to these unsung political activists in their moment of need.
The case proper for all 30 of them will be heard on 10-14 October.
As an interesting aside, the Butterworth Court office has an unusual feature: almost everything is neatly and prominently labelled, even the switches on the wall (labelled ‘Suis’) and the computer mouse (“Tetikus”). There’s also red sticky tape on the ground to indicate where the tables, chairs and even the waste-paper basket should be located.
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The PSM6 n their lawyers are the rakyat’s real heroes struggling against the evil UMNO-BN region. The Butterworth Court would be hard put to label the position of JUSTICE in its premises as JUSTICE has been trampled on by .. judges (appointed under the Mahathir administration).
The Attorney-General Tan Sri Gani Patail (yang ikut perintah?) should explain why the alacrity with which he wants to prosecute the PSM EO6 in contrast with his total immobility to charge Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC aka SPRM) officers for a pile of crimes and unlawful actions as exposed by the Royal Commission of Inquiry (RCI) into Teoh Beng Hock’s (TBH) death?
Imagine this scenario………….
When they were released, there was a media conference and they said that they regretted. The Home Minister then said that they
were being freed as they had shown remorse, had repented and had promised not to repeat the offence.
I must be dreaming. That was a drama called “Immigration 8”
The immgration 8 is more dangerous than any criminals or communists as their action can allow illegals to enter our country to create havoc. Yet they are released?
What the Immigration 8 did was a threat to the country’s security. And it has been taken lightly including the Home Minister.
It is like allowing all criminals to say that they regret and be remorseful and then let them go. Maybe it is a good idea. No need to spend tax payers money to have prisons
Why Hisham did not extend his ‘maaf’ spirit in the Ramadan to other ISA and EO detainees ?
Anywy how can he tell or measure remorsefulness?
When this …. govt took the uncalled action, they must be “high in spirit”!…
Malaysian had witnessed the biggest fuss recently displayed by (those) calling hemselves, Datuk T and now this…
the BN circus is back in town, the UMNO clowns are at their best….
Malaysia boleh!
All this “Communist” witch-hunting will only result in a jump in
PSM membership.
Communism is all but dead but our police (seem to) continue to ‘honor’ it as a bogeyman to justify its action.
I think it is time for PDRM to put a closure to the Bkt Kepong incident. Let’s move on as it has been decades since the fall of Berlin Wall. PDRM should undertake lawatan sambil belajar to Vietnam and China to see the ghosts of communism have been laid to rest for good – No more threat as communist insurgents have already extinct in Malaysian jungle.
A quote from Prof Shamsul Amri Baharudin:
“Musuh Barisan Nasional (BN) bukan lagi komunis yang bergerak dari hutan, tetapi pergerakan madani yang mempunyai kesedaran politik yang meningkat…..”
Kesedaran politik anak muda Malaysia yang dilahirkan selepas tumbangnya Berlin Wall, tidak lagi menganggap komunis itu ancaman negara kita lagi. Mereka lebih takut kepada fenomena Barang Naik (BN) yang mengancam cara hidup mereka.