The Sun : Whipping was unlawful

R. Surenthira Kumar
The Sun

PETALING JAYA (Nov 22, 2007):

The extended detention of eight Myanmars by prison authorities on Wednesday was unlawful, the Bar Council’s Human Rights Committee chairman Edmund Bon said today.

"We are extremely disappointed that the accused served longer jail terms than ordered by the courts, and were also whipped," he said when commenting on the case of eight Myanmar nationals who were whipped after serving more than double their jail terms due to a delay by the courts.

"The prisons cannot hold someone once his prison sentence has been served, irrespective of whether the whipping has been executed. In other words, the prisons cannot hold a prisoner just to wait for a decision whether to whip or not after his sentence is completed." added Bon who urged the courts to exercise its discretion and not impose the punishment of whipping on them, in the event asylum-seekers and refugees are prosecuted.

He said asylum-seekers and refugees require protection by the authorities and urged the government to stop prosecuting them, but to fully co-operate with UNHCR to allow them safe passage to a third country or peaceful residence here.

As a developing nation, Bon said the country should recognise and implement international human rights norms in the treatment of asylum-seekers and refugees as contained in the Refugee Convention.

"Prosecuting marginalised groups will not end the influx of the persecuted from neighbouring countries. It merely prolongs the suffering of those seeking escape from brutal regimes," he said.

The issue cropped up after eight Myanmars, who were sentenced to four months jail and two strokes of the rotan for entering the country illegally in April, dropped their appeal against the whipping.

The men gave up waiting for the appeal to be heard, as after serving four months longer than their sentence the outcome of their withdrawal of the appeal was yet to be known.

They were finally whipped on Wednesday and sent to the Immigration detention centre in Semenyih for deportation.

Meanwhile, Internal Security Deputy Minister Datuk Fu Ah Kiow said the extended detention of the eight Myanmars was lawful.

He said the Deputy Public Prosecutor had made an application for the eight men to be detained further according to the Subordinate Courts Act 1948.

He said the sentence must be seen wholly as it was not completed until the whipping had been carried out.

However he added the judiciary should speed-up clearing of such cases involving foreigners.
"The saying, justice delayed is justice denied, holds true and unless the courts speed up hearing the cases, the foreigners cannot be released sooner," said Fu, who added that sending them to the Immigration detention depots, after they had served their prison terms, while awaiting the outcome of their appeals on the whipping, was the same as their freedom is still restricted.

Foo however said the issue of illegal immigrants was serious and the government has to take a hard stand on the matter.

Meanwhile, Tenaganita said among the other factors which has resulted in immigrants having to stay behind bars longer, is the non-availability of accredited interpreters and translators at hand to hasten the court hearings.

"They are often deprived of legal representation and unless the Legal Aid Centre or volunteer lawyers agree to help them, their cases will be postponed indefinitely, said Tenaganita programme officer Florida Sandanasamy.

In many cases, those under detention give-up waiting for their cases to be heard after appealing against the sentence, and decide to accept whatever the courts order, with the hope of ‘getting it over with as quickly as possible’ and be freed or deported, she added.

http://www.sun2surf.com/article.cfm?id=20046
Updated: 07:55PM Thu, 22 Nov 2007