Cow-herding family wants justice for kin detained under Sosma

Recounting their harrowing experience when police raided their house in the middle of the night, the family pleads for bail for those arrested while an elected rep calls for the immediate repeal of the act.

A group of 30 people, whose family members are behind bars for Sosma-related charges, seeking Penang Deputy Chief Minister II P Ramasamy’s assistance today.

GEORGE TOWN: A family of cow herders in Penang is unable to forget a nightmarish incident last year when two of their family members were taken away in the middle of the night by policemen on suspicion of being involved in gangland activities.

N Kala, 31, recounted how police officers barged into their Green Lane home at 1.45am on July 18 last year to arrest her husband S Thannimalai, 36, and his brother S Thinagaraju, 29.

She said police ignored their repeated pleas that it might be a case of mistaken identity. Instead, the officers said they were acting under the Special Offences (Special Measures) Act, or Sosma.

Police told the family the men were being arrested for their alleged involvement in the outlawed Gang 04.

Sosma allows for detention without trial and permits arrests without a warrant. The brothers are still languishing in detention as they are not allowed bail.

“My husband had been a chef at a five-star hotel for the past 17 years, while my brother-in-law was involved in our cow-rearing business. We are doing okay and we have no involvement in gang-related matters.

N Kala says some of her 40-odd cows have been impounded by the Penang Island City Council while some are missing following the arrest of her husband and brother-in-law under Sosma.

“They are good people and have never been involved in any crime. I feel there has been a big mistake,” she said in Komtar today.

Kala said while the two men were in detention, their 40-odd cows were left unsupervised by the foothill, with the city council charging them RM500 for each “stray” cow.

“What are we to do? We can’t even afford to pay the council, and some of the cows are missing,” she said.

Kala said the cows were given to her by her father, who was a cattle breeder in Kampung Buah Pala, Bukit Gelugor.

She said her husband used to help out with the cattle farming on his days off.

She said the small sundry shop she operated in Tanjung Bungah had to be closed most of the time, as she had to take care of three young children aged one to 6.

Kala said Thannimalai and Thinagaraju were charged in court in August last year but no pleas were recorded.

“I hope the government would at least allow bail for my husband and brother-in-law until their trial,” she said, adding the case was still ongoing, with the next hearing fixed for July 16.

Kala shared her experience at the invitation of Penang Deputy Chief Minister II P Ramasamy, who had organised a press conference to hear their grievances.

N Kala (right) and her sister-in-law S Rateika in Komtar today.

She was among 30 people who came to see Ramasamy for help over the detention of their relatives under Sosma.

Ramasamy said Sosma was a “barbaric and draconian” law that was similar to the now-repealed Internal Security Act, which also allowed for detention without trial.

He urged the government to repeal the law immediately as it was grossly unfair and unconstitutional. It was against the right of a person to remain innocent until proven guilty, he added.

“Those under Sosma will be in the lock-up until the case is disposed of by the court, and no bail will be offered.

“Ideally, if you are charged for a crime, you must be tried and allowed bail. But under Sosma, no one is offered bail. They are sent straight to jail, awaiting trial.

“These laws are no longer consonant with the current government’s aspiration of espousing liberty, upholding the rule of law and fair trial for all,” he said.

A Jastin Jane (second from right, purple) telling P Ramasamy about her family member’s arrest under Sosma.

Ramasamy said if those arrested were high-risk criminals, an electronic monitoring device might be attached to their ankles while they waited for their trial.

As a majority of the 900 detained under Sosma were of Indian descent, he said he suspected there was “selective persecution” of Indians under the law.

“I guess it is easy to take in Indians as they are mostly marginalised. These are mostly people from a poor section of the society.

“This is what you get from a government that was racist. You don’t give Indians opportunities, deny them this and that, with the result that they end up being criminals.”

Meanwhile, Bagan Dalam assemblyman Satees Muniandy and municipal councillor P David Marshel said they would embark on a roadshow across Malaysia to urge a repeal of Sosma soon. -FMT