By Boo Su-Lyn
November 21, 2010
The Malaysian Insider

KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 21 — Pakatan Rakyat (PR) and Barisan Nasional (BN) lawmakers have demanded newly-installed Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Ismail Omar to end indiscriminate fatal police shootings instead of “frolicking” at mock casinos.

Police had shot dead a 15-year-old suspected robber on November 13, just seven months after 14-year-old Aminulrasyid Amzah was gunned down by the police in Shah Alam on April 26.

“The top priority is to end cases of indiscriminate police shootings, reduce the crime rate and make people feel safer,” DAP advisor Lim Kit Siang told The Malaysian Insider today.

“These are the things that should receive the focus of the new IGP instead of going on a frolic having a mini casino,” he added.

Yesterday, the families of two of the three youths shot dead on November 13 after being suspected of robbing a petrol station claimed the trio were killed by the police in cold blood.

Muhammad Shamil Hafiz Shapiei, 15; Hairul Nizam Tuah, 20; and Mohd Hanafi Omar, 22, were killed by the police after a reported high-speed car chase in the early morning of November 13 in Glenmarie, Shah Alam.

The families’ lawyer, N. Surendran, described the shootings as a “gangland-style execution”, pointing out that the gunshot wounds showed that the victims were shot at close range and not in self-defence as the police had claimed.

“All three were shot in the head and chest with bullets exiting lower,” said Surendran.

Selangor acting police chief Datuk A. Thaiveegan, however, has reportedly defended his officers’ actions by describing the three suspected robbers as “seasoned criminals” who were allegedly involved in at least three armed robberies in Selangor last week. He claimed that the police shot the suspects in self-defence as they had allegedly rushed to attack the policemen with machetes after the pre-dawn car chase.

Today, Lim accused Ismail of mixing up his priorities and failing to end a police “culture” supporting a shoot-to-kill tendency.

“If shooting is necessary and unavoidable to protect policemen’s lives, standard operating procedures must be followed so as not to kill but to maim. It would appear that with the change of IGP, there is no change in the police culture as such. There should be a total overhaul of police standard operating procedures in such cases,” said the veteran DAP leader.

“Yesterday, the media reported police having mock casinos. This is the wrong set of priorities,” he added.

Ismail, who replaced Tan Sri Musa Hassan as the country’s top cop on September 13, reportedly set up a mock casino at the Cheras police college in a bid to train policemen on nabbing gamblers.

Policemen are reportedly taught various gambling games available in casinos and other entertainment outlets.

PAS vice-president Datuk Mahfuz Omar echoed Lim’s views and said that Ismail must assure the public that it was safe from indiscriminate police shootings.

“The new IGP needs to bolster public confidence that the police will not simply shoot indiscriminately,” said Mahfuz.

He also pointed out that Ismail should train his men on various procedures to be followed in shooting cases instead of card games.

“Training should be given on how to shoot, in which circumstance, what must be done before the shooting, the criteria for a suspect who can be shot, mental training… not training on gambling,” said the Pokok Sena MP.

Mahfuz also called for a thorough probe into the families’ complaints.

“A complete investigation should be done to check if the people who were shot were really suspected robbers, and to see if the shots were fired not to kill but to apprehend them,” he said.

Lembah Pantai MP Nurul Izzah Anwar supported Mahfuz’s points and further demanded for the formation of the Independent Police Complaints and Misconduct Commission (IPCMC).

“The shooting is deplorable,” said Nurul Izzah.”I call for immediate investigations and reiterate the need of the IPCMC in its entirety,” she added.

The IPCMC was proposed by the Royal Commission on the Enhancement of the Management and Operations of the Police in 2005 but the government rejected the proposal on the grounds that its powers were too broad. In place of the IPCMC, the government last year established the Enforcement Agencies Integrity Commission (EAIC) to investigate not only the police but other enforcement agencies.

The commission has, however, not been called upon to investigate Aminulrasyid’s shooting or other fatal police shootings.

The PKR vice-presidency contender also lambasted the Malaysian Crime Prevention Foundation (MCPF) for saying today that negative public perception of the police was a new “crime” that should be curbed immediately.

“What’s worse is MCPF’s latest comments, which sidesteps the readiness to take stock of the problem and ownership in providing solutions,” said Nurul Izzah.

Meanwhile, Umno vice-president Datuk Seri Shafie Apdal said a report on the incident was necessary to ascertain the facts of the case.

“It’s better for us to get the report,” said Shafie.

Echoing PR leaders, Umno’s Johor Baru MP Datuk Seri Shahrir Abdul Samad also said that an open investigation should be conducted.

“I reckon since the parents made the complaints, there must be an investigation,” said Shahrir.

“As with Aminulrasyid’s situation, I don’t think there will be any cover up,” he added.

Besides Aminulrasyid, a second case involving the fatal shooting of 18-year-old Mohd Afham Arin in Johor Baru on October 20 last year has also surfaced after the victim’s mother recently demanded an independent commission to investigate the case.

According to human rights group Suara Rakyat Malaysia (Suaram), 88 people died in police shootings last year.

The NGO also claimed that not even one police officer has been held accountable and that the high number of deaths in 2009 was “alarming”, considering that there were only 13 such cases in the previous two years.