Gutsy Sin Chew Daily senior journalist Tan Hoon Cheng makes Internal Security Act (ISA) history for being detained for the shortest period under the infamous detention-without-trial law – less than 20 hours!
She was detained in her Bukit Mertajam home on Friday, September 12, 2008 at 8.35 p.m and released at her Bukit Mertajam house at 4 p.m.
She spent the Friday night in the police lockup and the next morning was being taken down to Bukit Aman in Kuala Lumpur by car but U-turned at Ipoh to return to Penang as “instruction” came for her release.
All for a four-paragraph straight reporting of a speech by Umno Bukit Bendera division chairman Datuk Ahmad Ismail in the Permatang Pauh by-election ceramah on August 23 referring to the Chinese in Malaysia as “penumpang”!
Home Minister, Datuk Seri Syed Hamid Albar meanwhile acquired ISA infamy for his cynical, preposterous and contemptible explanation and justification for Tan Hoon Cheng’s arrest as well as those of Teresa Kok and Raja Petra Kamaruddin under the ISA.
Albar claimed that Tan was detained for her safety as the police believed her life was “under threat”.
I could imagine former Prime Minister who was also Home Minister for over a decade giving such a preposterous justification – which would be typical of what I had told Mahathir to his face in Parliament about “Mahathirish perverse illogic”.
But unlike Mahathir, Hamid is a trained lawyer!
Hamid has brought the legal profession into grave disrepute with such preposterous reasoning!
Hamid said the police had acted according to law.
Can Hamid quote chapter and verse in the ISA to educate MPs and Malaysians as to when it was amended to include a new-fangled objective to protect journalists from physical “threat”?
But Hamid could not resist providing the real reason for her detention, as reported by Malaysiakin:
Home Minister Syed Hamid Albar has implied that Sin Chew Daily reporter Tan Hoon Cheng was also to be blamed for the public furore over the ‘Chinese squatter’ remark.
“The whole thing was started by her, (so) it was best that we talked to her,” Syed Hamid said in reply to a question during a press conference at the federal police headquarters in Bukit Aman today.
Asked to elaborate, Syed Hamid said the ripple effects from Tan’s article had caused “the polemic and fear” thus warranting investigations by the police.
“That information is from her and it was published. (Since) it has been published, it is best that we get to the bottom of it by getting the information from her.
With such a dumb explanation, Malaysians cannot be inspired by the confidence that the country has a good, steady, level-headed and solid Minister responsible for national security, law and order.
Here is another one of Hamid’s many dumb explanations in his pathetic attempt to justify the ISA arrests of Tan, Teresa Kok and Raja Petra Kamaruddin:
Someone can start a hobby to collect these Hamid Albar “gems”!
#1 by kerishamuddinitis on Sunday, 14 September 2008 - 6:48 pm
Ahmad IMMIGRANT is a GENIUS! He truly is. He is secretly working to strenthen PR and weaken BN. What a masterstroke – to make a seditious statement denying the citizenship of Malaysian Chinese, stoke the racist sentiments of Malays, enjoy TV airtime to wag his fingers at all and sundry, unashamedly protest his right to champion ketuanan Melayu, negotiate a 3-year disappearance from UMNO, set in motion the idiotic act of detention under ISA, cause right-thinking Malays who were until the ISA fiasco fence-sitters but are now definitely on the side of justice, commonsense and are embarrassed at the stupidity of our Ministers and our country being perceived as ‘a nation led by clowns’ in the eyes of the world and STILL GET OFF SCOTT FREE! Man, he is one master politician. I think Ahmad IMMIGRANT already signed the SD, handed it to DSAI and had already confirmed crossing before the entire fiasco.Then, he proceeded to casue havoc in UMNO!
Bodowi is an imbecile – he just couldn’t see how much damage Ahmad IMMIGRANT did to him. It also hasn’t sunk in with Bodowi that Syed Hamid is pumping water into the moving sands under him. Syed Hamid is a moron to think that he can pump water, pump himself and ejaculate such utter rubbish in front of millions of Malaysians and the world audience and get away with it.
Come Sept 16, Ahamd IMMIGRANT will be standing beside DSAI with a wide grin for having done so much damage to UMNO and BN.
DSAI for PM this Sept 16! Or 17 or 18 or whenever it suits DSAI.
All right-thinking Malaysians are waiting. But maybe the right time for DSAI to do it is just before the UMNO GA in DEC! That would be the final nail in the coffin of the Useless Moron Nincompoop Organisation!
#2 by ALLAN THAM on Sunday, 14 September 2008 - 7:39 pm
Dear Minister I feel crying after reading your explanation on the reason of arresting Ms Tan using ISA. You have really make us feel shameful locally and internationally. Dear Minister you as a trained lawyer and as a seasoned politician make us feel more shameful and at the same time realized how cruet is politic in real life. You have choose to associate without all those incompetent to continue using ISA to create fear among the Malaysian. Dear Minister it is time for you to resign for the good of the nation. Your colleague Zaid Ibrahim has a least come strongly against the abuse of this law and wish he can influence the government to immediate release all those remain retained under ISA.
#3 by wendyoscar88 on Sunday, 14 September 2008 - 11:33 pm
Saudara Lim,
Lain kali di Parliment sila nasihat menteri undang-undang Zaid aturkan sessi latihan undang-undang untuk BBCC supaya dia orang lebih matang dan lebih faham undang-undang terutama sekali apa undang-undang untuk mempertahankan rakyat dan mana undang-undang untuk penjenayah serta anasir-anasir yang menggangukan ketenteraman rakyat. Sila minta Datuk Zaid menasihat mereka cara debat yang betul jangan macam binatang liar di parlimen dan bikin malu kepada rakyat dan negara. Jangan basirkan duit rakyat dan negara untuk lawatan ke Taiwan dan belaja cara pertanian semasa “typhoon” berdekatan. Apa mereka dapat belajar dalam keadaan cuaca begini. Kalau kita pergi kursus atau latihan majikan kami juga akan minta kami persembahkan/buat laporan keatas apa baru yang kita telah belajar. Jadi sila minta BBCC yang buat lawatan kemukakan suatu laporan kepada rakyat yang mengundikan mereka apa yang mereka dapat belajar. Saudara Lim saya juga ingin tahu dari mana universiti sibotak bertauliah. Tolong nasihat dia fikir dengan otak nya sebelum jawab soalan journalist jangan sampai malu kepada seluruh kabinet dan negara. Kesian dengan orang “international circles” mengejek ketua-ketua negara kita. Kalau peguam ini pergi ke mahkamah untuk mepertahankan kes mereka 100 kes dia mempertahanpun dia akan kalah. Sila minta Datuk Zaid Ibrahim bagi nya sedikit latihan sebelum menghadapi pemberita. Menjawap soalan mereka seperti budak-budak “kindergarden”.
#4 by wendyoscar88 on Sunday, 14 September 2008 - 11:42 pm
dear kerishamuddinitis,
You r quite logic and right. I think this pretending to be bodoh botak also might be standing beside DSAI and Ahmad talking intelligently and smiling since every stupid thing they did means 10,000 vote for the PR/Najib or Tun.
#5 by richard.wong8 on Monday, 15 September 2008 - 9:12 am
His head is as Botak as his brains…..cannot answer simple questions. Probably should keep him out out politics being stupid, the same treatment as 2 Sitiawan twins being barred from taking UPSR exams!
#6 by richard.wong8 on Monday, 15 September 2008 - 9:24 am
One more stupid answer…Yesterday’s The Star quoted that this Botak reply that Tan Hoong Cheng was arrested under ISA as a protection for her as her life is in danger?????
What a JOKE! Using ISA for protection? If Tan Hoong Cheng life’s is being threaten, then it’s the Police who needs to protect her. This Botak is also ‘pushing’ his responsibilities & blamed that the Police acted on their own to arrest RPK, Theresa Kok & Tan Hoong Cheng under ISA. Do the Police have such authority?
#7 by boh-liao on Monday, 15 September 2008 - 9:50 am
Yeah, the MCA Public Complaints and Bureau guy Michael Chong should remember this: Next time when people’s lives are threatened by Ah Long, remember to contact your pal Syed Hamid Albar for ISA protection!
Syed Hamid Albar is now above the law and decides how best ISA can be deployed!
#8 by kerishamuddinitis on Monday, 15 September 2008 - 11:53 pm
Hi wendyoscar88, yes you might just be right too. Hahahaha, those clowns are totally clueless about the kind of damage they are causing UMNO and BN. Now, Malays are increasingly swinging over to DSAI! Oh well, this is turning out to be a merry-go-round of clowns, crooks and corrupt BN politicians dropping their pants and skirts.Just like Chua Soi Sex :):)
#9 by ktteokt on Wednesday, 17 September 2008 - 9:02 pm
I think Tan should be recorded in the Malaysia Book of Records as the person to be detained under the ISA for the shortest time and also for the “wierdest” reason!