Update 8pm - I thought of what else I can write on this, but it’s not easy. Like Rocky, I’ll just reproduce:

Pic of Aina at school (right).

Dear YB Syed Hamid Albar
Home Minister

Re: Aina Mardiah Shahrial, 17

You may not know Aina, she is the eldest daughter of Shahrial Sirin, an ISA detainee. On the afternoon of July 2, about 3 pm, she was admitted into Kajang Hospital. The girl was fighting for her life. The family immediately informed authorities at Kamunting, where her father had been detained for the last 7 years.

Somehow, Shahrial was only told of her daughter’s illness at 10.30 am the next day, July 3. Aina’s mother made a personal appeal to the authorities at Kamunting to let her daughter be with the dad for the last time. The doctors said Aina had only a few hours of life left, God-willing.

The authorities at Kamunting said they could not release Shahrial. They had to get your signature on the release papers. Yes, YB, your precious signature.

Aina’s father was finally released at 5pm. It was the longest four-hour journey to Kuala Lumpur.

Shahrial got to her daughter’s side at 9.45 pm. He was too late. Aina had passed away at 6.20pm without seeing her father.

Thank you, YB, and may Allah bless you and your family.

pic: A father’s belated good-bye

Norlaila Othman, a wife of an ISA detainee herself (read here), told me that the Abolish ISA Movement will be writing to Syed Hamid so that the Minister knows about the father and daughter. And that besides love, sometimes all we need is a bit of common sense.

Read the Harakah.net’s report here. And Tehsin’s Detention without trial: The Ultimate Obsenity

Update 4.45pm - See Rocky for a completely heartbreaking account of the family tragedy endured by an ISA detainee. I’m too crushed to say anymore for now.

Thanks Mr. Mugam, for the point.

Syed Hamid:

DETENTION under the Internal Security Act (ISA) is geared more towards rehabilitation rather than criminal punishment.

Home Minister Datuk Seri Syed Hamid Albar told M. Manogaran (DAP – Teluk Intan) that ISA detainees would be rehabilitated in regard to their extremist beliefs and actions, which could threaten national security.

“Those held under the ISA will undergo a rehabilitation programme at their place of detention.

“If a detainee has been considered to be rehabilitated and no longer poses any danger to the country, he or she will be released,” he said in a written reply.

Really? Well, we have a lot of ex-ISA detainees out there we can use as test of rehabiliation effectiveness: Anwar (when he was younger than me), Kit Siang, Syed Husin, Tian, Guan Eng..

How’s that rate of success coming eh?

I wouldn’t quite consider Ezam a successful case of Kamunting rehabilitation either.

And you think Uthayakumar is going to come out and join MIC.

Don’t be stupid, be just; no more detention without trial.

Tags: Detention without Trial by Nathaniel Tan
18 Comments »

Increasing reports on Uthayakumar’s ill health.

If these reports are true, the government better not be having malicious plans here.

If anything were to happen to Uthayakumar, there will be mass discontent - something that can be used as an excuse to things like impose states of emergency and what not.

I trust Malaysians will stand firm in rejecting both any such act, as well as the manipulation of the health and well being of a human being that is entitled to his full human rights.

Tags: Detention without Trial by Nathaniel Tan
9 Comments »

Credit where credit is due - well done to whoever secured ISA detainee K. Vasantha Kumar’s visit to his ailing daughter. I’m very happy he got to see her, and can only hope that her health will improve, and we see before too long an end to all ISA detentions.

There are reports that Uthayakumar’s health is also better, and this too is welcome news.

Syed Hamid Albar could *almost* have been said to be being off to a semi-decent start if not for the fact that his other recent statements on greater press freedom were completely and inexplicably contradicted by his ministry’s refusal to renew the Makkal Osai permit.

He seems to be getting some of the right ideas, but come now, consistency is key! He’d also do well to approve continuing visitations by Vasantha Kumar.

*

I had a really great weekend with polytikus! <3 I’m not great at travel writing, but maybe she’ll be penning something presently :)

Tags: Detention without Trial by Nathaniel Tan
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I read with great sadness about yet another National Service Trainee death :(

Like the last case, the boy contracted a fever, failed to be treated properly, and by the time he was admitted, it was too late. I guess Najib is too busy with other things to care about these sorts of clearly avoidable deaths :( There’s a need for nothing less than a total revamp of our system if we don’t want to lose any more of our young ones :(

On the ISA detainees front, a worried mother is asking that her husband be allowed to visit their ailing daughter:

ISA detainee and Hindu Rights Action Force (Hindraf) coordinator K. Vasantha Kumar’s wife K. Vickneswary wants the authorities to allow her husband to visit their ailing daughter.

Their four-year-old daughter, V. Vishaleny, had been having a fever since last week and was admitted to a private hospital in Cheras yesterday when her temperature shot up.

The 35-year-old Human Resources Coordinator said their daughter was exceptionally close to her father and his absence in recent months has taken a toll on her health.

“She is yearning for him and I am afraid that her condition will deteriorate if she doesn’t get to see her father soon,” said Vickneswary.

Brings tears to the eyes :(

I really hope the authorities will look into their hearts, see reason and act compassionately.

I’ve also been following reports on Uthayakumar’s health. I’m sure the higher up’s know that if anything happens to Uthayakumar, hell is going to break lose. Maybe this is too much conspiracy theorising on my part, but I really hope they will not sink so low as to use such a tragedy to create instability that they will then take advantage of.

If this ever comes to pass, I’d urge all of Uthayakumar’s to hold fast to his principles of non-violence. Of course, what I want most of all is all five men who have not been charged in any court of law to be released immediately.

Enough tragedies for Malaysia, we need the healing to begin now!

Tags: Government Negligence, Detention without Trial by Nathaniel Tan
3 Comments »

As Hindraf comes back into the spotlight a little bit, we hope there will be some progress in the courts.

On Samy and now Donald (?!), I suppose whatever brickbats and bashing they get for being a flip flop and too little too late are all eminently well deserved. After all, they did not stand up when it counted.

Nonetheless, I suppose that when I think of the bigger picture - ie, securing the unconditional release of the 5 detainees plus all languishing in Kamunting - I welcome any call by any politician to secure their release.

Let’s see if those responsible are listening.

*

I spoke recently at a small function to promote the Freedom Film Fest. I’m no filmmaker, but this random idea popped in my head to do a short documentary on the families of the Hindraf 5.

It’s still very much just a passing idea, one that may not see much fruition, but if we can think of a compelling angle to take on this subject, a fresh and effective approach, and a good production team, it might be worth a little bit of thought. Any suggestions?

Tags: Detention without Trial by Nathaniel Tan
9 Comments »

Something else to reflect on this Thaipusam. From Malaysiakini:

Dressed in a frilly dark-red dress and wearing pom-poms in her hair, five-year-old Vwaishhnnavi was all decked out to deliver a letter to Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi. What she wanted was a ‘date’ for Valentine’s Day.

I’m speechless.

The girl is Waythamoorthy’s only daughter. The daughter of a man who cannot come back home because of how he will be made to suffer, the niece of a man who no one can be confident of seeing again anytime soon.

*

Adults have been no less proactive. Malaysiakini reports 130 people are on hunger strike, but the number could be far more.

Commentator Senthil (whose bro I have the honour or having met personally) wrote:

I dont know if you realise this Nat.

But many have already been fasting betwen 2 to 3 days together with the Hindraf 5 , many are doing it silently and without publicity.

as thaipusam an asupicious prayer week, makes it even easier for the indians to go on hunger strike.

you can check with my brother selwam who is in penang and into his 2nd day of fasting without food.

Its like the values of Mahatma Gandhi working its way into malaysia.

first massive rallies of non violence, then detention without trial and now hunger strike of ahimsa’s way.

its a real great thing achieved as many malaysians are at heart with them in this strike and are doing it with them.

God bless

*

This comes a bit late, but Helen Ang also asked me to highlight her pieces on Hindraf here and here.

*

In this festival of purification, 5 Malaysians sit and rot in a prison, with no hope of a fair trial.

Najib says they are there because to appease a phantom mob of Kg Baru rioters, Malaysians whose guilt has not been proven ‘must’ be punished. Sadly, MCA is only too happy to agree.

On Feb 16, a community who has borne the brunt of not only these but decades worth of injustices have only flowers to give their Prime Minister.

I’m planning on bringing him one too.

Tags: Making A Better Malaysia, Detention without Trial, Ethnicity by Nathaniel Tan
6 Comments »

Malaysiakini:

Deputy Prime Minister Najib Razak today defended its crackdown on dissent, including the arrest of ethnic Indian activists and suppression of street protests, saying it had averted a serious risk of racial violence.

He raised the spectre of the country’s worst race riots, when almost 200 people were killed in clashes between ethnic Chinese and Malays in May 1969.

“If the Malays of Kampung Baru come out then we have the spectre of a serious possibility of a racial clash in this country,” Najib said in an interview with AFP. The Malay enclave was one of the flashpoints of the 1969 riots.

“There were signs that they were preparing to come out so we had to tell them, ‘look, don’t make the situation any worse’,” he said.

“The government was actually taking action to prevent anything worse from happening.”

I confess, this is the stupidest defence of tyranny I have heard in a while.

If people are instigating riots, then arrest the instigators!!!

I don’t care what race they are or where they’re from, but if people are threatening violence, you arrest and charge the people who are threatening, not the people who are being threatened!

Such injustice, such complete abandonment of reason.

Time to vote in the alternative guys, and time to spread the word!

Charge or free the ISA 5!!

Tags: Detention without Trial, Ethnicity by Nathaniel Tan
6 Comments »