The announcement by Prime Minister Tun Mahathir Mohamad that the Independent Police Complaints and Misconduct Commission (IPCMC) will finally be set up is indeed timely and important.
Just recently in Melaka on 12 September 2018, the Melaka Sessions Court ruled that the police wrongfully shot and killed Loh Kim Hiong in 2014, who was surrounded and shot dead by 9 policemen in Machap, Melaka for allegedly trying to attack the police with knives following an altercation with a neighbour. Based on witness accounts however, he had raised his hands to surrender, but was still shot.
Unlawful killings such as this is not uncommon in Malaysia. For many years, NGOs and political parties have documented and raised many issues of death in custody, police torture, corruption, and misuse of force and firearms.
Some cases are well documented and publicized, while some cases, like that of Loh Kim Hiong, goes by quietly. They are not isolated cases because the problem is widespread and systematic in nature.
A report by the Human Rights Commission of Malaysia (SUHAKAM) in 2016 highlighted that there were 255 deaths in police detention from 2000 to 2014, but only two were said to be caused by the police. SUHAKAM also reported that the torture and violence by the police is widespread based on interviews with detainees.
The establishment of the IPCMC is therefore an important political reform for Malaysia Baharu. It will increase accountability, check and balance, and access to justice for cases involving police abuse of power.
The IPCMC must not be seen as a distrust or attack against the police force, but instead as a mechanism to increase public confidence towards the police and to reduce abuse of power.
In 2005, the Royal Commission to Enhance the Operation and Management of the Royal Malaysia Police, which was set up by the Barisan Nasional government, had recommended for the establishment of the IPCMC. For 13 years, the Barisan Nasional government under two Prime Ministers refused and failed to do it.
Now, in less than 6 months from coming into power, the Pakatan Harapan government has again showed that we have the political will to reform by establishing the IPCMC.
It must be cautioned however that the details and mechanism of the IPCMC has yet to be finalized. In this regard, all parties – including Members of Parliament, the Cabinet, civil society, the police, and citizens – must ensure that the IPCMC is set up correctly.
Otherwise, we might end up with another ineffective and toothless tiger like the Enforcement Agency Integrity Commission (EAIC) which can only make recommendations.
As a first step, the government must ensure that the details of the IPCMC are thoroughly debated in Parliament, either via the Dewan Rakyat or a select committee. The views and recommendations of experts, NGOs, and other relevant stakeholders must also be considered.
Broadly and in principle, the soon-to-be-established IPCMC must consist of commissioners who are independent, enjoy public confidence, and have no conflicting interest to preserve interest of the police or the government.
They must be given powers to independently receive and investigate complaints, and to make legally binding recommendations or actions.