Wang Kelian mass graves: Suhakam fingers cops over 'four-month delay'

Police had dispatched its forensics team to exhume the bodies at the Wang Kelian human trafficking campsite in May 2015, four months after the mass graves were discovered.

This was among the findings of a 121-page report prepared by the Human Rights Commission (Suhakam) and NGO Fortify Rights titled “Sold like a Fish”, which was revealed in Kuala Lumpur this afternoon.

Suhakam, in a statement, said the delay could have affected evidence to facilitate police investigations.

“The four-month delay in exhuming the bodies delayed post-mortem examinations and, in turn, hampered forensic specialists from identifying the cause of death of exhumed remains,” the commission said.

The report also urged Malaysian authorities to ensure those responsible face the music in tandem with international human rights laws.

“If possible, Suhakam and Fortify Rights also suggest that the Royal Commission of Inquiry (RCI) identifies the individuals who committed the crimes and bring them to justice in Malaysia,” it added.

The RCI on Wang Kelian, headed by former chief justice Arifin Zakaria, is expected to reveal its findings in June.

The mass killings made headlines in 2015 when police discovered 139 graves, 106 bodies, believed to be Rohingyas, and 29 illegal immigrant detention camps deep in the jungles of Bukit Genting Perah and Bukit Wang Burma, a few hundred metres from the Malaysia-Thai border in Wang Kelian.

[More to follow] - Mkini