Press Statement By DAP Secretary-General And MP For Bagan Lim Guan Eng In Kuala Lumpur On 24.3.2015.
Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Khalid Abu Bakar is undoubtedly a proven BN gladiator who can easily win in general elections based on his sterling record of punishing opponents of BN but unashamedly practices double-standards in letting off racists and extremists. No one is too unimportant to escape his steel dragnet whether young or old, ordinary rakyat or PR MPs, male or female as long as they are anti-BN or send out anti-BN tweets. Even apolitical young women from TV presenters BFM’s Aishay Tajuddin to lawyers like Michelle Yesudasas(defending the detained lawyer Eric Paulsen) tweeting about rape are not let off the hook.
BN claims that there is freedom of speech in Malaysia, but the IGP is there to ensure that there is no freedom after speech for those who oppose BN. Malaysia would not be so intolerant, if the IGP had also acted fairly without fear or favour against hate speech by those who support BN. Unfortunately, no one was arrested for their tweets threatening bloodshed against non-Malays despite constant reminders being sent to the IGP. Nor was action taken against those pro-UMNO politicians who threaten to burn the Malay version of the Bibles or even an UMNO politician who spread seditious lies about the Kuala Kedah Chinese community burning the holy Koran.
Worse, the police is taking deliberate action to apply for remand orders to force those arrested to spend a few nights in the lockup as an act of intimidation through instilling fear that they will be detained longer than necessary. Why should a Selangor EXCO member or MPs or even ordinary people exercising their fundamental human right of peaceful assembly be treated like ordinary criminals who have committed heinous offences of robbery or bodily injury?
The latest action in arresting nearly 90 people at an orderly and peaceful protest against the goods and services tax (GST)’s impact on the poor outside the Customs Department in Kelana Jaya and at the Kelana Jaya police station last night is unwarranted. DAP deplores the excessive use of force against some of those arrested. Those arrested included Parti Sosialis Malaysia (PSM) Sungai Siput MP Michael Jeyakumar Devaraj, PAS MP Dr Hatta Ramli, PKR’s Badrul Hisham Shahrin (CheguBard) and DAP’s Hew Kuan Yau(superman) upcoming DAP Wanita activist Sefura Othman(Rara) and her brother Ahmad Haikal, and calls for their immediate release.
Both BN and the police are wrong and have badly miscalculated if they think that such oppressive action will work. Repressive tactics by the police will not stifle protests against the GST nor still the voices of conscience against abuses of power nor frighten away those who detest corruption.
LIM GUAN ENG
—-Mandarin Version —
民主行动党秘书长兼峇眼区国会议员林冠英于2015年3月24日在吉隆坡发表声明：
全国总警长丹斯里卡立阿布巴卡真是国阵的“锦衣卫”，根据他打压国阵政敌、却无耻地放过种族主义分子及极端分子的“汗马功劳”，他在大选应该能够获胜。
全国总警长丹斯里卡立阿布巴卡真是国阵的“锦衣卫”，根据他打压国阵政敌、却无耻地放过种族主义分子及极端分子的“汗马功劳”，他在大选应该能够获胜。无论老幼、普通老百姓或民联国会议员、男性或女性，只要他们是反对国阵或是通过推特发出反对国阵的讯息，都逃不出他的“铁沙网”。就连与政党无关的视频女主持兼BFM主持人爱莎达祖丁以及在推特上发表关于强奸隐忧的律师米歇尔（她为遭扣留的律师艾力保森辩护）也难以幸免。
国阵声称，马来西亚有言论自由 ，但是全国总警长却保证那些反对国阵的人士“发言后没有自由 ”。如果总警长无畏无惧对发表仇恨言论的国阵支持者采取行动，我国人民不会如此不能容忍。不幸的是，当一些人发表对非马来人进行血洗的推文后，总警长却无动于衷，尽管公众已经无数次提醒他。当亲巫统政治人物威胁要焚烧马来版圣经，甚至巫统政治人物散布谣言说瓜拉吉打的华人焚烧《可兰经》，总警长都没有采取行动。
更糟的是，警方刻意采取行动，申请延长扣留被逮捕人士的扣留期，让他们在扣留所待多几个晚上，威胁他们、让他们害怕被扣留更久。为什么一名雪州行政议员或国会议员甚至是普通老百姓在行使基本人权进行和平集会后，会受到像作奸犯科的犯人一样的对待？
警方最新一轮的行动逮捕了近90名示威人士，这是非常离谱的。他们于昨晚在柯拉娜再也关税局及柯拉娜再也警方外示威，和平抗议即将实施的消费税对贫穷人士的影响。遭警方扣留的人士包括社会主义党和丰区国会议员再也古玛、伊斯兰党国会议员哈达、公正党巴鲁希山（CheguBard）及行动党丘光耀（Superman）、行动党妇女组成员Rara及其弟弟阿末海卡。行动党对于警方过度使用暴力镇压表示悲痛，并要求当局马上释放他们。
国阵及警方都估计错误，他们以为强力镇压会有效果。警方的镇压手段压制不了抗议消费税的行动、也压制不了反对滥权的良心之声、更加阻吓不了那些痛恨贪污的人士。
林冠英