Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Khalid Abu Bakar is undoubtedly a proven BN gladiator who can easily win in general elections based on his sterling record of punishing opponents of BN but unashamedly practices double-standards in letting off racists and extremists. No one is too unimportant to escape his steel dragnet whether young or old, ordinary rakyat or PR MPs, male or female as long as they are anti-BN or send out anti-BN tweets. Even apolitical young women from TV presenters BFM’s Aishay Tajuddin to lawyers like Michelle Yesudasas(defending the detained lawyer Eric Paulsen) tweeting about rape are not let off the hook.
BN claims that there is freedom of speech in Malaysia, but the IGP is there to ensure that there is no freedom after speech for those who oppose BN. Malaysia would not be so intolerant, if the IGP had also acted fairly without fear or favour against hate speech by those who support BN. Unfortunately, no one was arrested for their tweets threatening bloodshed against non-Malays despite constant reminders being sent to the IGP. Nor was action taken against those pro-UMNO politicians who threaten to burn the Malay version of the Bibles or even an UMNO politician who spread seditious lies about the Kuala Kedah Chinese community burning the holy Koran.
Worse, the police is taking deliberate action to apply for remand orders to force those arrested to spend a few nights in the lockup as an act of intimidation through instilling fear that they will be detained longer than necessary. Why should a Selangor EXCO member or MPs or even ordinary people exercising their fundamental human right of peaceful assembly be treated like ordinary criminals who have committed heinous offences of robbery or bodily injury?
The latest action in arresting nearly 90 people at an orderly and peaceful protest against the goods and services tax (GST)’s impact on the poor outside the Customs Department in Kelana Jaya and at the Kelana Jaya police station last night is unwarranted. DAP deplores the excessive use of force against some of those arrested. Those arrested included Parti Sosialis Malaysia (PSM) Sungai Siput MP Michael Jeyakumar Devaraj, PAS MP Dr Hatta Ramli, PKR’s Badrul Hisham Shahrin (CheguBard) and DAP’s Hew Kuan Yau(superman) upcoming DAP Wanita activist Sefura Othman(Rara) and her brother Ahmad Haikal, and calls for their immediate release.
Both BN and the police are wrong and have badly miscalculated if they think that such oppressive action will work. Repressive tactics by the police will not stifle protests against the GST nor still the voices of conscience against abuses of power nor frighten away those who detest corruption.