Link Roundup

Malaysian bloggers on RELA:

Mob’s Crib: Rela wants moar powar

Perkhidmatan Awam: Rela members just a bunch of ‘little Napoleans’

KTemoc Konsiders: Malaysia – Rise of the Warlords

MERHROM: Still no protection for Rohingya refugees in Malaysia

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Rela members to receive RM9 million in allowances

RELA appears to be on track for becoming an official government department with paid volunteers enforcing the law. The article reports there are 350,000 RELA members throughout the country. 350,000 members given powers of search, seizure, and arrest, without any background checks and no training to speak of. How many police officers are there in Malaysia, and what exactly are they for?

Rela members to receive RM9 million in allowances
Published 2007/07/11 in The New Straits Times

BERNAMA

IPOH, Wed.:

The People’s Volunteer Corps (Rela) has received an initial allocation of RM9 million as allowances for some 100,000 members.

Parliamentary Secretary to the Home Affairs Ministry, Datuk Paduka Abdul Rahman Ibrahim, said the allocation received yesterday was part of the RM32 requested by Rela this year for its members who were involved in operations.

“The operational allowance is at the rate of RM4 per hour for ordinary members and RM5.80 per hour for officers to a maximum of eight hours per day, as approved by the government in March,” he said.

Rela and Malaysia’s invisible war

Published 24 January, 2007 at Aliran

The volunteer corps’ crackdown on undocumented foreigners is not a war on terror; it is a war on defenceless migrants, observes Romany.

Like George W Bush’s ‘war on terror’ waged by the United States, an unseen, little-publicised ‘war on undocumented immigrants’ is being waged in Malaysia. This war, waged under cover of darkness, is hidden from public view and much information about it lands in the dead-news boxes of the editors of mainstream newspapers.

Keeping mum about brutal RELA raids

Published March 15th, 2006 at  Malaysia Media Monitors’ Diary

The senseless attack by RELA personnel on defenceless Indian migrant labourers waiting outside their own embassy for their problems to be sorted out by representatives of their home country is something that should be deeply embarrassing to Malaysians and the Malaysian government. It says so much about Malaysian attitudes towards foreigners, even those legally in the country. This is an announcement to the international community that we are ‘anti-foreigners’ – especially if they are not rich, professional, economically sound or from a G7 nation.

These downtrodden people had already been cheated out of their life-savings by unscrupulous conmen posing as employment agents, exploited by similarly conscienceless profiteering employers who feel no tinge of guilt at using what is little more than slave labour. And now, these honest but helpless workers have been further victimised by the authorities. Why have they been put into detention? What wrong have they done in seeking help from their High Commission officials?

Redundant Rela – Aliran

Published Friday, July 6, at Aliran

Rela’s reported move (New Straits Times, 26 June 2007) to push for a law to legitimise itself and its operations has triggered alarm bells for human rights in Malaysia.

Rela, which has become internationally notorious for its indiscipline and human rights abuse against defenceless migrants and refugees, is now seeking to legitimise itself by proposing new laws to enable it to operate as a lawful government department operating independently of the Home Affairs Ministry and the Immigration authorities.

RELA Bill will worsen the climate of arbitrary law enforcement: Amnesty International

AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL MALAYSIA PRESS STATEMENT

5 July 2007

Amnesty International Malaysia expresses serious concerns over the
recent news highlighted in the media on the 26 June 2007 that the Home
Affairs Ministry plans to restructure the civilian volunteer body RELA
into a separate department with greater authority and even powers to
source out its own funding.

The ministry stated that RELA’s main task once the bill is passed will
be to catch illegal immigrants and to help the immigration and police.
The Ministry is planning to table the Bill on RELA in parliament this
year which will make RELA as a full fledge law enforcement department.

Malaysia urged to stop rounding up Myanmar refugees: Khonumthung News

July 05, 2007

In an ardent appeal to the Malaysian government, the Chin Human Right Organization has urged it to call a halt to the crackdown on Myanmar refugees. Instead it has asked Malaysia to cooperate with the office of The United Nation High Commissioner for refugees (UNHCR) to protect the inherent rights of refugees and asylum seekers.

The Malaysian government is violating basic human rights by its relentless raids targeting the refugee community. To make matters worse there are reports of torture and abuse of hapless refugees in detention camps and consequent deportation, said CHRO’s urgent letter of appeal.

Brian Yap: What it takes to win the war against crime

The following editorial presents some interesting facts regarding crime rates.

In his 2005 analysis of the rise in crime in Malaysia presented at a police conference, ACP Amar Singh Sidhu claimed that the proportion of crime committed by foreigners was around two per cent of the total index crimes in Malaysia. Plus, on a per capita basis, foreigners on average commit about 3.8 crimes per 1,000 population. Malaysians on the other hand, commit 5.3 crimes per 1,000 population. So the problem lies not with foreign labour, but with local enforcement.

Brian Yap: What it takes to win the war against crime

The New Straits Times
July 4th, 2007

THE prevalence of crime, especially in urban areas, is understandably causing much concern these days.

Nevertheless, neither the surge in law-breaking nor the concern of the public is anything new. In the past few years, we have practically seen snatch thefts become part of city life. Almost everyone knows a victim, if they aren’t already one themselves.

It’s a sign of how bad things have become when having your bag stolen is considered a blessing, as some victims have been hurt or even killed in such incidents. Last month’s demonstration in front of the residence of the Johor Menteri Besar is testament to the frustration and helplessness ordinary citizens feel about this increasing sense of lawlessness.

IGP says situation in Johor is under control

Apparently, illegal immigrants = organized crime. Members of ‘crime syndicates’ surely would never obtain legal ID and travel documents before running amok in Malaysia.

From The New Straits Times Online

KUALA LUMPUR, Sun:
Police will use preventive laws to put away members of local and Singaporean crime syndicates operating in the south.

They will adopt the same measures now being used in Sarawak to fight organised crime.

The New Sunday Times learnt that officers from the state’s anti-vice, gaming and secret society divisions had been directed to mount operations against these syndicates.