Rights groups fume over migrant worker’s 'wrongful' whipping

 

Forty-five human rights groups have expressed their shock that an Indonesian migrant worker, Sabri Umar, was whipped at Tawau Prison last month on June 23.

The whipping was carried out despite a pending appeal at the High Court concerning Sabri’s sentence from the Sessions Court.

The groups released a joint statement this morning that was signed off by renowned human rights activist Charles Hector and Apolinar Tolentino, the Malaysian Representative at Building and Wood Workers International (BWI) Asia Pacific Region.

The statement said Sabri’s conviction by the Sessions Court and subsequent whipping as “wrongful”.

“On 19 April, the Sessions Court convicted Sabri for committing the offence pursuant to Section 6(1)(c) Immigration Act 1959/63 and sentenced him to 11 months imprisonment and 5 whippings.

“He was unrepresented at the time,” it said.

The statement added the perusal of court documents revealed that the immigration documents tendered to the court were false.

“It stated there were no records of entry and exit for Sabri.

“It failed to disclose the truth, that Sabri was indeed a documented migrant worker for the past seven years and that he was in the employ of one Fu Yee Corporation Sdn Bhd in Tawau, Sabah.

“His work permit also has been renewed by the Immigration Department in 2022 and should be reasonably valid for a year,” it said.

The human rights groups also added that whipping as a corporal punishment must be abolished.

“Sabri’s case has come to light, but there is concern about whether others have been whipped before their appeal is heard and disposed of.

“Whipping is a corporal punishment that inflicts serious physical and psychological injury, where victims are known to pass out even before the full sentence is carried out,” they said.

The groups also called on the government to issue an apology and the abolishment of whipping as a sentence.

“We call for Malaysia to immediately apologise and do the needful to ensure justice is done for the wrongful or illegal whipping of Sabri Umar.

“We (also) call for the immediate abolition of whipping, a form of corporal punishment in Malaysia,” they said. - Mkini