Suhakam Denied Access To Prisons To Probe Inmate Death, First Obstruction In 25 Years
The incident is further compounded by the recent detention of two prominent human rights activists, Sevan Doraisamy and Azura Nasron from the Suaram group, who were questioned for allegedly entering the Ministry of Home Affairs (KDN) complex illegally.
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The Human Rights Commission of Malaysia (Suhakam) has been denied access to prisons to investigate the death of an inmate, marking the first such obstruction in the commission’s 25-year history.
The Prison Department cited an ongoing police investigation for denying Suhakam access, a move the commission strongly criticized as an unacceptable violation of statutory responsibilities, prejudiced and completely unreasonable.
Suhakam pointed out that in its decades of experience, it has often conducted concurrent investigations with the police in prisons, including in cases of deaths in custody, without any issues.
The commission asserted that no one has the power under the law to prevent or delay Suhakam’s investigation, referencing the powers granted to it under the Human Rights Commission of Malaysia Act.
Inmate’s Unexpected Death Sparks Calls for Accountability
The denial of access comes despite assurances from Home Minister Datuk Seri Saifuddin Nasution to cooperate with Suhakam in probing the Taiping Prison death case.
The case centres on Gan Chin Eng, a 62-year-old inmate.
Gan died in Taiping Prison due to an abdominal injury caused by blunt trauma, as reported by the coroner.
His son, aged 20, has called for accountability and raised concerns over the circumstances of his father’s unexpected death.
Activists Detained Despite Police Claim of No Arrest
This development is set against the backdrop of the recent detention of two human rights activists who had visited the Ministry of Home Affairs (KDN) in Putrajaya to submit a memorandum on detainees’ rights.
Suara Rakyat Malaysia (Suaram) executive director Sevan Doraisamy and programme Azura Nasron from the Suaram group were questioned for allegedly entering the KDN complex illegally.
However, the police claimed they were not arrested.
The Lawyers for Liberty (LFL) group said video evidence showed a clear detention.
Still, some disagreed, arguing that it was not an arrest as it was done politely and without force.
At the time of writing, Sevan has since been released after giving his statement, while Azura is reportedly still required to give a statement on this matter.
Aku bukan pakar bahasa. TANGKAP boleh berbeza tanggapan dan definisi. Tapi kalau nak kata Kerajaan MADANI zalim, itu jauh daripada berilmiah.
— Amer Hamzah (@amer7211) February 13, 2025
Lihat perbezaan ‘TANGKAP’ zaman MahaFiraun dan zaman MADANI. Zaman MahaFiraun serbu dengan UTK tanpa apa2 notis. Zaman MADANI siap… pic.twitter.com/46KpyKUmuI
Parts of this story have been sourced from Aliran.
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