MEDIA RELEASE - BOYCOTT KAMUNTING (fwd)

[M G G Pillai <pillai@mgg.pc.my>]

---------- Forwarded message ----------
Date: Sat, 22 Sep 2001 10:30:36 +0800
From: Raja Petra Kamarudin <petra@tm.net.my>
To: <Undisclosed-Recipient:@relay3.jaring.my;>
Subject: MEDIA RELEASE - BOYCOTT KAMUNTING


MEDIA RELEASE- BOYCOTT KAMUNTING

21 SEPTEMBER 2001

We are extremely concerned about the health of the six political
detainees currently being indefinitely detained without trial at
the Kamunting Detention Camp - namely Saari Sungib, Mohamad Ezam
Mohd Nor, Tian Chua, Hishamuddin Rais, Lokman Noor Adam and Dr.
Badrulamin Bahron. During the last visit, we noticed that they
looked very pale and thin and each of them has lost between two
to nine kilograms in weight over the last week alone. Over the
last ten days they have not touched their regular food and have
only survived on biscuits that they bought from the camp canteen.

They have made this decision to boycott their regular food as a
mark of protest against the authority for isolating them and not
allowing them to mix freely. This is not normal, as normally
detainees would be allowed to mingle after the first month of
detention. But it is now three months since their detention and
they are still being isolated and not allowed to mix freely with
each other.

The Camp Commandant, Zawawi A. Rahim, has confirmed that they are
being treated in this manner on orders from the Ministry of Home
Affairs. Zawawi has also admitted that the camp administration is
facing a lot of difficulties due to this policy of isolation. On
16 September 2001, the six detainees wrote to the Minister of
Home Affairs asking for clarification on this matter but to date
no reply has been received.

This move to boycott their regular food and sustain themselves on
a paltry diet of biscuits is the appropriate action to take to
protest this unfair and highly irregular treatment. Amongst what
they are being subjected to are:

1. During the weekly family visits, family members are not
allowed any physical contact with the detainees and are separated
by a wire mesh fence. The visits are also closely monitored and a
camp guard will always be present during these visits thereby not
allowing the family any privacy. Further to that, only those
approved by the Ministry of Home Affairs may visit the detainees
whereas this is not so for the other detainees.

2. Exchanges of letters between the detainees and their families
are heavily censored and on most occasions the letters are held
back for some time before they are delivered.

3. The food provided by the detention camp lacks nourishment and
for five days a week they are given a diet of only salted fish.
This has affected the detainees' health causing some to develop
high blood pressure and high cholesterol.

4. The detainees are being denied access to news and information
and any newspaper they are provided are first of all censored and
certain sections of the newspaper are removed or cut out leaving
holes or gaps in the newspaper. They are also restricted to only
three types of publications - magazines, general reading material
and religious books.

5. The six detainees are separated into three blocks with two
detainees in each block whereas each block would normally house
up to twenty detainees. This is clearly an indirect form of
solitary confinement.

6. The Muslim detainees are not being allowed to perform their
mandatory Friday prayers and this has been so since their arrest
five months ago whereas Islam has stipulated these Friday prayers
as compulsory.

The family of the six detainees calls upon all Malaysians as well
as the International community to help pressure Malaysia's
Ministry of Home Affairs in asking that the detainees' rights be
restored and that they be accorded proper treatment. The family
plans to raise this matter with the Gerakan Mansuhkan ISA (GMI)
or "Movement to Abolish the ISA" so that this can be brought to
the attention of Malaysia's Human Rights Commission (SUHAKAM),
the United Nations (UN), and local and International human rights
organisations and NGOs. The detainees are being illegally
detained without trial or evidence of any crime and clearly their
detention is for purely political motives and in contravention to
the Constitution of this country. They should no longer be
detained and should be released immediately and unconditionally.

ISA Detainees Family Support Group


Thanks & regards
Raja Petra Kamarudin
http://www.freeanawar.com/
http://berita-keadilan.net/
http://partikeadilan.org/




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