PH has always been against Sosma, Gobind reminds Saifuddin

 

Damansara MP Gobind Singh Deo tells home minister Saifuddin Nasution Ismail that a detained person should have access to court during his 28-day initial detention.

PETALING JAYA: Damansara MP Gobind Singh Deo has urged home minister Saifuddin Nasution Ismail to reconsider his stance on the Security Offences (Special Measures) Act 2012 (Sosma), stating that it was at odds with the position taken by Pakatan Harapan.

The DAP deputy chairman and former minister said PH’s stance had been that Sosma is “problematic and needs to be dealt with”, adding that Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim said in 2019 that certain parts of Sosma need to be amended as the law was deemed to be “too harsh”.

“There is certainly much to be done in order to remove these draconian aspects of Sosma. We in PH have been consistent in our call for change,” said Gobind.

“When faced with legislation oppressive in nature, discussions must be held and points of view taken moving ahead in line with our push for reforms.

“I would therefore ask the home minister to reconsider his position and to review and make the necessary changes to Sosma.”

At a press conference yesterday, Saifuddin indicated that the government would not be reviewing Sosma.

When asked by reporters whether Sosma would be reviewed, the PKR secretary-general defended it by saying “the law allows the court process to take place”.

Saifuddin said this was in contrast to the now-defunct Internal Security Act (ISA), which allowed for detention without trial, and the emergency ordinances (EO), which allowed for detention of up to 60 days.

“At the end of the 28 days, there will only be two recommendations for the detainee (under Sosma) — either to charge them in court or to free them,” he said at a press conference in Bukit Aman.

A lawyer by training, Gobind noted that Section 4 of Sosma permits a person to be detained for a period of up to 28 days without access to court, stating that this prevents checks and balances on the powers of the investigating authorities.

Gobind said there ought to be a process that allows a detained person access to court during that time, stating that this is why PH voted against the motion brought by the previous home minister, Hamzah Zainudin, to extend Section 4(5) of Sosma in Parliament in March.

Gobind was referring to the five-year extension to Section 4(5) of Sosma, which enables police to detain a person suspected of being involved in terrorist activities for a period not exceeding 28 days for investigations.

The motion, retabled by Hamzah in July, was then passed after bloc voting during which 111 MPs voted in support and 88 MPs against. A total of 21 MPs were absent.

Among the other Sosma provisions which Gobind called for a review included Section 13, which relates to bail after an accused is charged. He said it should be reviewed as it provides for the continued detention of a person pending trial, even where the facts of the case would not otherwise support the need for such pre-trial detention.

He added that Section 30 of Sosma, which permits an application by the public prosecutor to remand an accused who has been acquitted after trial, when there is an appeal, should also be reviewed as well.

“The trial and appeal process is lengthy. This means that an accused in a case like this would be held in custody for indefinite periods of time even after an acquittal, which is certainly harsh and oppressive,” he said.

Among the other Sosma provisions which Gobind said should be reviewed include provisions for interception of communications (Section 6), the taking of evidence of witnesses in a manner not seen or heard by an accused or his counsel (Section 14), and provisions which deal with the admissibility of documents and evidence (Sections 20, 22, 23, 24 and 25). - FMT