Choice of place, time of arrest a blow to two big institutions

Opposition MP says Rafizi Ramli’s arrest is a deliberate attack on the institutions of Parliament and family.

COMMENT

By Raja Bahrin Shah

I was unfortunate enough to witness Rafizi Ramli’s arrest on Tuesday. Having confirmed his attendance at a Terengganu ceramah next week on his way out of Parliament Hall, I saw him waiting for his car as I walked to mine. As I drove out of the Parliament front entrance, I was surprised to see a large crowd of people and police surrounding Rafizi’s car. I then saw Rafizi being led out by some police personnel from his car into another waiting car. As I was driving my own car, I drew alongside the car Rafizi was taken to. Through the car’s open window I called out to Rafizi and asked him what was happening and who should I inform about the incident. As Rafizi was about to answer me, his car window was wound up, cutting off our conversation. I was told by some police officers to move on as I was blocking traffic flow.

What shocked me was not so much Rafizi’s arrest but the location and circumstances of it. He was arrested virtually right at the doorstep of our Parliament after carrying out his duty to the rakyat as a Parliamentarian. I always thought of Parliament as an institution to be respected and a sacred sanctity. After all we enjoy certain immunity within Parliament to perform our duty.

A resolution traditionally tabled at the start of Parliament sittings states that the Inspector-General of Police should ensure the smoothness of ingress and egress to and from Parliament so Parliamentarians may perform their duty.

Rafizi’s arrest right at the doorstep of Parliament’s entrance is seen as a challenge to the right of passage of Members of Parliament to and from their place of duty to serve their country. I am of the view it is a deliberate attempt to intimidate Members of Parliament. It is a clear warning to Opposition members that no place is safe. Imagine if a member of the King’s Palace was arrested upon leaving the Palace grounds after performing his duty to the King. Parliament is also a place where we serve our King and the Rakyat. There are hundreds of other places and times Rafizi could have been arrested but why was the gate of Parliament deliberately chosen if not as a clear message of intimidation to Opposition Parliamentarians? It was done in bad taste.

Secondly, the timing of Rafizi’s arrest was cruelly chosen to break Rafizi’s and his family’s spirits. Again there are perhaps hundreds of other times and places Rafizi could have been arrested but why at this particular time and place? I am sure the police know his exact routine by now. I am sure they know Rafizi would pick up his two-year old son from childcare in the evening after Parliament was done, since his wife is working. I cannot forget the distressed expression on Rafizi’s face and his gestures as he was led to the other car. Even during heated Parliament debates, I have never seen that expression on him before. As a father and parent I totally sympathise with him thinking that his innocent two-year old toddler would be waiting for the father who would not be turning up to take him home. It is absolute cruelty to make an innocent two-year suffer for something he cannot understand and is totally innocent of. Rafizi pleaded to be allowed to pick up his son before going to the police station but to no avail. It is one thing to break Rafizi’s spirit but totally despicable to let an innocent child suffer for the cruelty of mind games by the authorities. The authorities should be ashamed of themselves. What ever happened to our “keluarga dan masyarkat penyayang”? Malaysia is truly losing its soul.

Rafizi’s location and time of arrest is a deliberate cruel attack on the institution of Parliament and the institution of family in that our responsibilities as parents are held sacred no matter what our religion is.

Where is Malaysia heading to? We have a lot of soul-searching to do to comprehend how low we have come as a once fine nation called Malaysia.

Raja Bahrin Shah is a Member of Parliament for Kuala Terengganu.