KUALA LUMPUR, 13 March 2009: Seputeh Member of Parliament (MP) Teresa Kok Suh Sim today filed a suit against Home Minister Datuk Seri Syed Hamid Albar and three others claiming that she was wrongfully arrested and detained under the Internal Security Act (ISA) last year.
She filed the suit through Messrs SN Nair and Partners at the High Court registry here at 8.40am.
Besides Syed Hamid, she also named Inspector-General of Police (IGP) Tan Sri Musa Hassan, DSP E Kim Tien, and the Malaysian government as defendants.
In her statement of claim, Kok said that she was arrested by the defendants at the entrance to her residence at Pearl Tower, OG Heights at 11.15pm on 12 Sept 2008 and detained for two hours without being allowed to contact her closest relative or her lawyer.
She said that at 2am on 13 Sept at the Wangsa Maju police station she was informed by the three defendants that she was detained under Section 73(1) of the ISA on the grounds that she had taken part in activities that could cause tension and racial clashes.
Kok said she was then sent to a secret location where she was detained without trial until 19 Sept.
She claimed that her arrest and detention were done without basis.
She said Deputy IGP, Datuk Ismail Omar, issued an official press statement on 19 Sept 2008, which was published in the media, saying that she was released unconditionally because “the police were satisfied that she was not a threat to public order and security”.
Kok claimed that because of the negligence, arbitrariness and frivolity of the defendants in effecting her wrongful arrest and detention, she was placed under severe mental stress, pain and suffering due to food poisoning and denial of her constitutional rights.
She is seeking damages for wrongful arrest and detention, pain, suffering and mental stress, general and special damages and other reliefs deemed fit by the court. — Bernama
