KOTA TINGGI: April 26, 2008 By FARIK ZOLKEPLI
Preventive laws, such as the Internal Security Act (ISA) will not be abolished they were needed for the purpose of maintaining public order.
Home Minister Datuk Seri Syed Hamid Albar said countries such as the United States and the United Kingdom too have introduced such preventive laws.
“The act (ISA), which was introduced before the country’s independence has been continued and improved.
“It is not for the purpose of carrying out injustice but to protect the public’s right to live in comfort without fearing for their lives,” he said after launching the Kampung Rela feast here Saturday.
He said the government could not wait for anything bad to happen before taking action.
The minister was commenting on a claim by PKR de facto leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim that Pakatan Rakyat would abolish preventive laws should they rule the country.
He said Anwar never did anything when he was deputy prime minister and it was easy for the opposition to promise than actually implementing them.
On the five Hindraf leaders held under ISA, Syed Hamid said people should look on what they have done in the first place.
“We cannot wait for people to incite racial and religious feelings that can lead to problems. We have also arrested more Muslim activists from the Jemaah Islamiah and Darul Ismaliah compared to the five Hindraf members,” he said.
Syed Hamid said everyone had the right to express any grievances to the ruling government but it must be done responsibly.
“I think the government has a very clean record as actions were taken purely on issues where public order or security of the country can be jeopardised,” he said.
Syed Hamid also called for border patrols to be beefed up to prevent foreigners from entering the country illegally.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment