A-G: Maria Chin’s detention lawful

KUALA LUMPUR: The detention of Bersih 2.0 chairman Maria Chin Abdullah under the Security Offences (Special Measures) Act (Sosma) is justified and is within the confines of the law, said the Attorney-General’s Chambers yesterday.

Attorney-General Tan Sri Mohamed Apandi Ali, in a statement yesterday, said Sosma, or Act 747, was an act that provided for special measures relating to security offences for the purpose of maintaining public order and security.

“The A-G’s Chambers would like to clarify that Section 3, that is read together with the First Schedule of Act 747, defines ‘security offences’ as not only terrorism-related offences, but also activities that undermine parliamentary democracy as provided for under Section 124C of the Penal Code.

“The detention of Chin under Section 4 of Act 747 is meant to facilitate police investigations because she is suspected of being involved in activities that undermine parliamentary democracy, and (her detention) is therefore within the confines of the law.”

He said the A-G’s Chambers would give due consideration to the results of the investigations, which would be submitted by the police.

Apandi was responding to criticisms by certain quarters that Chin’s detention under Sosma was wrong.

Chin was detained by police last Friday, on the eve of the massive Bersih protest rally here, which was held to demand that Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak step down over graft allegations.

Chin had since gone to court and filed a habeas corpus application to challenge her detention under Sosma.

Her lawyer, Datuk Ambiga Sreenivasan, was quoted as saying the application cited Chin’s solitary confinement as one of the grounds for the legal challenge.

She had said Sosma was wrongly used against Chin, and that the method in which she was taken was unlawful.