ID :
25279
Sat, 10/18/2008 - 14:16
Auther :
Shortlink :
http://m.oananews.org//node/25279
The shortlink copeid
GOVT HAS NO PLAN TO REVIEW ISA AT THE MOMENT, SAYS PM
KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 18 (Bernama) -- The government has no plan to review the Internal Security Act (ISA), at least for the moment, Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi said Saturday.
He said the law was still being used and there was no discussion pertaining
to its status as yet.
Speaking to reporters after opening MCA's 55th Annual General Assembly
here,
he said the ISA was still relevant in today's context, and that even many other
countries were also enacting similar laws now for security reasons. MCA stands
for Malaysian Chinese Association, a component party of the ruling Barisan
Nasional (BN) coalition.
"ISA is not legislation that cannot be applied. Such legislation is also
applied by other countries.
"Countries which do not have the ISA now feel that it is proper to have
such
legislation, countries such as the United States and England," he said.
The prime minister also said that there was no abuse of power when the law
was executed.
He said it was important to exercise caution in executing the law. "There
has been no element of abuse of power," he said.
Abdullah said that for now he would focus on passing three bills, relating
to judicial reform, anti-corruption and policing, before leaving office in March
next year.
"At the moment, I am concentrating on tabling the three bills in
Parliament," he said when responding to reporters' questions on whether the
government might consider reviewing the ISA to suit the current situation.
On the call from various quarters, including political parties, for the
government to release all ISA detainees, Abdullah said the matter was under the
jurisdiction of the Home Ministry.
"I have no other comments. He (Home Minister Syed Hamid Albar)understands
the situation better, whether to release or continue with their detention," he
said.
When asked if it was timely for such a move considering that he was
embarking on a reform platform, Abdullah answered: "So what? Reform is
reform, law is law. Detainees are detainees. Reform does not mean we want to
reform everything, everything in the law, undoing offences."
The ISA, which allows for indefinite detention without trial, became the
subject of a controversy recently when three persons -- a reporter, a politician
and a blogger -- were detained under it.
-- BERNAMA
He said the law was still being used and there was no discussion pertaining
to its status as yet.
Speaking to reporters after opening MCA's 55th Annual General Assembly
here,
he said the ISA was still relevant in today's context, and that even many other
countries were also enacting similar laws now for security reasons. MCA stands
for Malaysian Chinese Association, a component party of the ruling Barisan
Nasional (BN) coalition.
"ISA is not legislation that cannot be applied. Such legislation is also
applied by other countries.
"Countries which do not have the ISA now feel that it is proper to have
such
legislation, countries such as the United States and England," he said.
The prime minister also said that there was no abuse of power when the law
was executed.
He said it was important to exercise caution in executing the law. "There
has been no element of abuse of power," he said.
Abdullah said that for now he would focus on passing three bills, relating
to judicial reform, anti-corruption and policing, before leaving office in March
next year.
"At the moment, I am concentrating on tabling the three bills in
Parliament," he said when responding to reporters' questions on whether the
government might consider reviewing the ISA to suit the current situation.
On the call from various quarters, including political parties, for the
government to release all ISA detainees, Abdullah said the matter was under the
jurisdiction of the Home Ministry.
"I have no other comments. He (Home Minister Syed Hamid Albar)understands
the situation better, whether to release or continue with their detention," he
said.
When asked if it was timely for such a move considering that he was
embarking on a reform platform, Abdullah answered: "So what? Reform is
reform, law is law. Detainees are detainees. Reform does not mean we want to
reform everything, everything in the law, undoing offences."
The ISA, which allows for indefinite detention without trial, became the
subject of a controversy recently when three persons -- a reporter, a politician
and a blogger -- were detained under it.
-- BERNAMA
