FAMILIES QUESTION TASK FORCE’S COMPOSITION
Three out of six task force members are former and serving police officers
THE families of activist Amri Che Mat and Pastor Raymond Koh have expressed concern about the composition of the task force to probe into the alleged involvement of Special Branch members in the “enforced disappearance” of the duo.
Both families, in separate statements, questioned the appointment of former and serving police officers in the six-member task force, as announced by Home Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin earlier.
“It is with regret that the family notes that three out of six task force members are (former and serving) police officers, and to make matters much worse, Datuk Mokhtar Mohd Noor, who was at the Human Rights Commission of Malaysia (Suhakam) hearing submitting on behalf of the police, was appointed as a member.
“If a police officer who participated in the Suhakam hearing can be appointed into a task force, then a lawyer from each of the families should be appointed to ensure a balanced and fair approach of the investigation and the report that is to be submitted.
“We find this unacceptable and believe that in any part of the democratic civilised world, this would not happen,” read the statement from Koh’s family.
The task force is headed by former High Court judge Datuk Abd Rahim Uda.
The other members are Mokhtar, former police legal division chief, federal police Integrity and Standards Compliance Department director Datuk Zamri Yahya, Enforcement Agency Integrity Commission operations director Datuk Muhammad Bukhari Ab Hamid, Attorney-General’s Chambers prosecuting division officer Mohd Sopian Zakaria and Police Commission undersecretary Mohd Russaini Idrus.
Koh’s family questioned the absence of a woman or a member of a different race or religion to reflect the multi-racial composition and muhibbah spirit in the country.
“Suggestions made by the family, such as to include a member from the Bar Council, Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission and a non-governmental organisation representative in the task force, were not taken into account.”
The family called for an investigation into both (Amri and Koh) cases to be looked into together, instead of Amri’s case proceeding first, as announced by Muhyiddin.
A statement issued on behalf of Amri’s wife, Norhayati Mohd Ariffin, said although she and Amri’s daughters were glad that the government had taken steps to address Suhakam’s findings, they were concerned about the composition of the task force and how it would impact the independence and impartiality of a credible investigation.
“For instance, we note (the presence of) Mokhtar, from a division that was implicated in the flawed investigation into Amri’s abduction and later, in the team representing the police during the Suhakam inquiry.
“As such, Mokhtar represents a conflict of interest.”
On Nov 24, 2016, Amri, the cofounder of non-governmental organisation Perlis Hope, went out in his vehicle from his home in Kangar at 11.30pm. His vehicle was later found at a construction site in the early hours of the following day.
Koh went missing in 2017, abducted by a group of men while on his way to a friend’s house in Petaling Jaya.
Suhakam, in its findings, found likely that the two both fell victims to “enforced disappearances” perpetrated by the state, in this case Special Branch policemen.
Muhyiddin yesterday said the findings by Suhakam in April that there was direct involvement of the police in the disappearances of the duo had caused worries and concerns among the public.
He said the report by Suhakam had caused negative perception of the police and this was also not fair to the force.
Muhyiddin said the task force had been given six months to complete a report on its findings.