Aliran Kesedaran Negara
Commission on Human Rights
57th Session
Item 17: Human Rights Defenders
(Delivered by Deborah Stothard, April 17, 2001)
Owing to time constraints, content in [ ] will not be delivered
Mr/Madam Chairperson,
I speak on behalf of Aliran [Kesedaran Negara].
For the past three years, I have been trying to convince my colleague, Mr CHUA Tian Chang, [also known as Tian Chua], to participate at the Commission on Human Rights. Tian, [as he is popularly known], has been an active human rights educator and defender in Malaysia and the region.
In 1999, Tian couldn’t be here because he was badly beaten by the police at a peaceful demonstration in Kuala Lumpur on April 14. [He was protesting the unjust conviction of the former Deputy Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim]. Despite his injuries Tian and another human rights defender Abdul Malek Hussein, sat in front of a police truck laden with acid water cannon to protect his fellow activists. Both of them were arrested and detained for "attempted suicide".
Last year, the Malaysian authorities descended in full force upon Kuala Lumpur to seal it off from potential demonstrations [on the first anniversary of Anwar’s conviction]. Tian was arrested on April 15 for speaking at a press conference. While he was not physically harmed on this occasion, the police made up for their laxity in August by assaulting him so severely that his spine was fractured. In the past two years he has been arrested and beaten by police so many times that it is a wonder the man can still walk.
This year, Tian’s participation at the Commission is absolutely out of the question because he, along with six other people was arrested under Malaysia’s draconian Internal Security Act last week. On April 10th and 11th, the following human rights activists were rounded up under the ISA which effectively allows indefinite detention without trial: Ezam Mohamad Noor, N Gopalakrishnan, Tian Chua, Saari Sungip, Hishamuddin Rais, Abdul Ghani Haroon, and Raja Petra Kamaruddin. They have been detained incommunicado for the past week; they have not been allowed to communicate with their families or their lawyers. Our grave concerns for their safety are justified by the "tradition" of various forms of torture against ISA detainees.
Mr/Madam Chairperson,
These men were detained because they were planning a peaceful rally to present a memorandum to the National Human Rights Commission on April 14. However, the national police chief Norian Mai appears to have lifted the script of a Hollywood action movie by making the fantastic claim that they had tried to obtain explosives including rocket launchers and petrol bombs to attack security forces. The nationalistic Prime Minister Mahathir, who is overwhelmingly attached to the ISA despite its colonial origins, has publicly supported this particular use of the ISA because there is "insufficient evidence" [to charge them in a court of law].
Mr/Madam Chairperson,
It is bewildering to see that the Malaysian government, having attained membership of the Commission [on Human Rights], seems to have increased its abuses of human rights. I hope that you will see it fit to remind them that membership does not grant them special dispensation or immunity in this context. Further I hope that you, and other members of this Commission will convince the Malaysian government to immediately and unconditionally release these human rights defenders.
Mr/Madam Chairperson,
The military regime in Burma seems bent on reducing the number of human rights defenders and educators to the level of an endangered species. While time does not permit me to name all of them, I wish to draw your attention to the case of Mrs San San Nwe, sentenced to 10 years in 1994, partly for speaking with the Special Rapporteur on Myanmar. Mrs San San Nwe is being held under atrocious conditions, she cannot even stand up in her low-ceilinged cell, and is only allowed 15 minutes of speech per day!
Mr/Madam Chairperson,
While it is encouraging to see the Royal Government of Thailand express its commitment to human rights promotion and education, I also note with concern that this commitment does not appear to be consistent in its application. Recently, several human rights educators, including myself, were declared persona non grata on grounds of national security and denied entry into Thailand. I have been denied clarification or an opportunity to respond to allegations, if any, in this context. I sincerely hope that the Thai authorities will understand that human rights education and advocacy is no threat to a democratic country and reconsider their decision.
Thank you.
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