Malaysian Bar president Steven Thiru wants the IGP and home minister to provide a comprehensive account of the steps that have been taken since May last year, when it was announced that CCTVs would be installed in all police station lock-ups. – The Malaysian Insider pic, November 7, 2015 

Public confidence in the police force can only be restored if swift action is taken to ensure that the culprits behind custodial deaths are brought to justice, the Malaysian Bar said today.

Its president Steven Thiru said the death of Syed Mohd Azlan Syed Mohamed Nur, 25, at the Sungai Renggit police station on November 3 last year, showed that the police are unable to police themselves.

"Public confidence can only be restored, and justice seen to be done, if swift action is taken to ensure that the perpetrators are brought to book and prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law," he said in a statement today.

"We also call on all government authorities to further strengthen the standard operating procedures in every circumstance of detention and custody, to ensure the safety and welfare of detainees. Every death in custody is inexcusable."

Inspector-General of Police (IGP) Tan Sri Khalid Abu Bakar has vowed that no personnel would be shielded from criminal charges after an Enforcement Agency Integrity Commission (EAIC) report said there was foul play in a custodial death case.

In a statement on Wednesday, Khalid said police were in the midst of concluding investigations into Syed Azlan's death and said the perpetrators will face criminal charges.

“We assure the public that those involved will be brought to justice as we do not shield any member of the police force who is liable for criminal charges,” he said.

The EAIC report said the death was caused by “physical violence” by police arresting and interrogating Syed Azlan during detention.

It also found that there were 61 injuries on the body and that police had disrupted material evidence by changing carpets with the deceased’s bloodstains in the station.

"It is shocking that individuals continue to die in such highly suspicious circumstances while under the care of the police," Steven said today.

The report by the EAIC is a severe indictment of the management and protection of detainees being held in custody. It points to a deeply entrenched and systemic problem within the police force that defies resolution."

The Bar president said he feared that Khalid's announcement may be a mere platitude, as custodial deaths have continued to go unpunished despite the setting up of a special committee, headed by the IGP, to prevent deaths in police lockups.

"Death in custody, especially by foul means or under dubious conditions, is among the most heinous crimes imaginable in a civilised society under the rule of law.

"The present state of affairs has led to much public outrage and an erosion of confidence in the police."

He noted that Home Minister Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi had previously proposed that closed-circuit television (CCTV) cameras be installed in all holding cells in police lock-ups and that the standard operating procedures for police interrogations would be relooked at.

Steven said the minister later announced in May 2014 that CCTVs would be installed in all police lock-ups, as only one police station lock-up had a CCTV then.

"The Malaysian Bar calls upon the IGP and the minister to provide a comprehensive account of the steps that have been taken in the intervening 17 months, and to account for the failure of the measures intended to eradicate the occurrence of deaths in custody.

"The police must be proactive in ensuring that the wrongful actions of some among them do not tarnish the standing of the whole force.

"Unless this is addressed, the police force will unfortunately remain a diminished institution in the eyes of the public," he added.

These incidents only served to underline the need for the setting up of an Independent Police Complaints and Misconduct Commission (IPCMC), as urged by the Malaysian Bar and other human rights groups, Steven said.

"The Malaysian Bar calls on the IGP to take concrete and immediate action, as this is a matter of utmost public interest that warrants the highest level of priority." he added. – November 7, 2015.

Resource : Malaysian Insider