Stale argument : ISA is used for political dissent.

ISA, they claim is a tool by the ruling government to silence political dissent and to hang on to power.

lets see how substantial this fact is.

I would like to redirect you to my earlier posting HERE

According to Aliran Online, the number of detainees as of May 2009 stands at 17 individuals.

Out of this 17 individuals, the number of political detainees stands at a "staggering" .......errrr..... ZERO /naught / kosong.

Again, i summarise for you the current detainees under the ISA;

TOTAL : 17 individuals .

10 are suspected Jemaah Islamiyah (1 of them being En Mas Selamat Kastari, the escaped detainee from Singapore)
- Jemaah Islamiyah has been listed in the United Nations' list of terrorist organisations linked to AlQaeda and the Taliban under the United Nations Security Council Resolution 1267 (link)

5 are linked to official documents forgery and falsification

1 Foreign agent/spy

1 status unknown


So where are the political detainees?



-
Phi
YES2ISA
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After Sept 11, USA scrambles their own ISA

On October 26th 2001, over a month after the deadliest terrorist attack on American soil, the United States scrambles a legislature into law called the PATRIOTS ACT

The law was submitted to Congress by the Bush Administration on September 24th, just 13 days after the attack.


What is the Patriots act? Kindly see BOLDED RED statements

The Campaign Committee of UNITE FOR PEACE provided the following brief rundown on the potential impact of the act on freedoms:

• Freedom of Association: Government may monitor religious and political institutions without suspecting criminal activity to assist terror investigations.
• Freedom of Information: Government has closed once-public immigration hearings, has secretly detained hundreds of people without charges, and has encouraged bureaucrats to resist public records requests.
• Freedom of Speech: Government may prosecute librarians or keepers of any other records if they tell anyone that the government subpoenaed information related to terror investigations.
• Right to Legal Representation: Government may monitor federal prison jailhouse conversations between attorneys and clients, and deny lawyers to US citizens accused of crimes.
• Freedom from Unreasonable Searches: Government may search and seize papers and effects owned by citizens without probable cause to assist terror investigations.
• Right to a Speedy and Public Trial: Government may jail anyone indefinitely without a trial, including US citizens.
• Right to Liberty: Anyone may be jailed without being charged or being able to confront witnesses against them.

• Secret Searches: The USA PATRIOT Act expands the ability of the government to use so called "sneak and peek" and "black bag" secret searches. These searches, depending on the target, require either no notification at all of the person being searched, or delay notification until after the search has occurred. This means that physical searches of our homes, cars, computers, workplaces and reading materials can be conducted without our knowledge. These provisions apply both in anti-terrorism investigations and routine criminal investigations.
• Government Surveillance: The USA PATRIOT Act minimizes the power of the courts to prevent law enforcement authorities from illegally abusing certain types of telephone and Internet surveillance in both anti-terrorism investigations and run-of-the-mill criminal investigations of American citizens. Law enforcement officials have the power to investigate American citizens for criminal matters without establishing probable cause if they designate that the investigation is for "intelligence purposes." The Director of Central Intelligence also has broad authority to identify individuals as targets for intelligence surveillance, placing the CIA firmly back in the business of spying on Americans.
• Privacy: The USA PATRIOT Act granted the FBI -- and, under new information sharing provisions, many other law enforcement and intelligence agencies -- broad access to highly personal medical, financial, mental health, library and student records with only the most minimal judicial oversight. The court must issue a subpoena whenever the FBI states that it is for an investigation to protect against international terrorism. The recipient of the subpoena is prohibited from telling anyone that the FBI has asked for the information. Now the FBI can get the entire database of a credit card company or the records of everyone who has used a certain public library. It can obtain information on everyone registered at a particular hotel, hospital, or university. It does not need to show probable cause that a crime is, has been, or will be committed.
• Dissent/Free Speech: The USA PATRIOT Act has the very real potential to greatly chill constitutionally protected speech in its overbroad redefinition of "domestic terrorism." The new definition is so vague that it could allow the government to designate lawful advocacy groups, like Greenpeace and Operation Rescue, as terrorist groups and subject them to invasive surveillance, wiretapping, harassment and then criminally penalize them for protected political advocacy.
• Bill of Rights for Non-Citizens: The USA PATRIOT Act permits the Attorney General to incarcerate or detain non-citizens based on mere suspicion and to deny re-admission to the US of non-citizens (including legal, long-term permanent residents) for engaging in speech protected by the First Amendment.

references : The Library of Congress


They learnt from a hard experience the need for a law such as the ISA. Do we wait for something bad to happen before we wake up?
Look at the summary of the Patriots Act above. Tell me it is not similar to our ISA.


-
Phi
YES2ISA
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The threat of terrorism in our region

It is important to note that the ISA is not only important in detaining a person but it enables the authorities to hold him/her for further investigation, fact finding and interrogation. Information gathered can be used by our intelligence team to further act upon other threats that may arise in the future.

Our close neighbour, Indonesia does not have the Internal Security Act. They cannot act upon tip offs, or detain a person as a preventive measure. And with dire consequences, as we all know that this region has become a hub for Al Qaeda's splinter group Jemaah Islamiyah. Indonesia has been paying the price for this, which we feel could have been avoided if they had something similar to Malaysia's Internal Security Act.

(1) October 12 ,2002 : Bali Bombing

Ground Zero


Amrozi aka "the smiling bomber" - guilty and executed by firing squad on 9 November 2008

Total casualties ; 202.
Total injured ; 209
Perpetrator; Jemaah Islamiyah
Source : Wikipedia

(2) August 5, 2003 : Marriott Hotel Bombing

Devastation

Azahari - shot and killed in East Java

Total Casualties ; 12
Total Injured; 150
Perpetrators : Jemaah Islamiyah, Including Hambali himself who is now detained in Guantanamo Bay (USA's own ISA) , and also Malaysian Azahari (pic above) who was said to be the technical mastermind and expert bomb maker.

Source: Wikipedia

(3) September 9, 2004: Australian Embassy bombing , Jakarta

Total Casualties: 12
Total Injured : 160
Perpetrators: Jemaah Islamiyah, including again, Malaysian Azahari and Indonesian Noordin Mohd Top. (Noordin as of today is still on the run and is high on FBI and Interpol's wanted list).
Source: BBC Archives

(4) October 1, 2005 : Bali Bombings (II)

Total Casualties : 26
Total Injured : Over 50
Perpetrators: Jemaah Islamiyah
Source: BBC Archives

(5) July 17 , 2009 : Jakarta Marriott & Ritz Carlton bombings

Ritz Carlton ground zero

Total Casualties : 8
Total injured: Around 50
Perpetrators : Jemaah Islamiyah
Source: Guardian Archives


(6) Christmas eve 2000 coordinated bombings on churches and various other locations - Source



As you can see above, in this region the threat by certain forces to undermine Islam is very real. Jemaah Islamiyah is one example of this threat. They deviated from Islam the day they chose to kill innocent lives. Look again at the list above. All of this attacks are linked to JI. Some of them have been detained, some executed while the rest still walks amongst us recruiting, brainwashing and planning their next move. Right at our doorsteps

Those uninformed will not realise the real threat that this splinter group of Al Qaeda actually poses to countries in this region. As mentioned before , 10 out of 17 of the current detainees under the ISA are Jemaah Islamiyah members.

Abolish ISA? release them? Hell no! not when Islam is being threatened like this! We will never leave Islam volatile and to be swayed into oblivion. No to abolishing the ISA! No to setting the detainees free!


-
Phi
Yes2ISA
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How does the world leading democracies counter threats to National Security without ISA?

Mansuhkan ISA? And then what? Well, lets see how the world's leading democracy handle threats to national security
I will let the pictures do the talking..

Martin Luther King (assasinated 1968)




JFK (Assasinated in 1963)



Jean Charles de Menezes (Assasinated - 2005)
read about him HERE

ISA or government Assasins? And by assasination, the victims are merely collateral damage "for the greater good".
With ISA, they will be given a chance to change and turn over.
You make the choice........................


-
Phi
Yes2ISA
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MAGARAN will hold rally on 1st August

Magaran Urges GMI To Cancel Anti-ISA Rally

Source : BERNAMA

KUALA LUMPUR, July 27 (Bernama) -- The Pembela Negara Federation of Non-Governmental Organisations Council (Magaran) has urged Gerakan Mansuhkan ISA (GMI) to cancel a rally planned for Saturday.

"Magaran wants GMI to cancel the rally. If it persisted, then Magaran will take to the streets to support the ISA at Dataran Merdeka at 11am the same day," said legal adviser Mohd Khairul Azam Abdul Aziz.

Magaran would gather at Masjid Negara, Padang Merbok and Pasar Seni before proceeding to Dataran Merdeka and Istana Negara to send a memorandum supporting the ISA to Yang di-Pertuan Agong.

He said Magaran would support the ISA and agreed if it was amended as the Act was still relevant to maintain peace and harmony.

"Magaran like to warn GMI not to act foolish by demanding that ISA be abolished as it had been proven to be effective in maintaining national security."

Mohd Khairul Azam said Magaran would apply for a permit to hold the rally.

Meanwhile, Pribumi Perkasa Malaysia (Perkasa) has lodged a police report on the planned rallies for the abolition and support of ISA.

Secretary Syed Hassan Syed Ali who lodged the report at Dang Wangi police headquarters today urged police to stop the rallies by GMI and Magaran as they could lead to rioting.



-- BERNAMA

List of I.S.A detainees

Figures from Aliran online ;

Total I.S.A detainees; Only 17 people as of May 2009.

Of this 17 ;

10 are suspected Jemaah Islamiyah (1 of them being En Mas Selamat Kastari, the escaped detainee from Singapore)
- Jemaah Islamiyah has been listed in the United Nations' list of terrorist organisations linked to AlQaeda and the Taliban under the United Nations Security Council Resolution 1267 (link)

5 are linked to official documents forgery and falsification

1 Foreign agent/spy

1 status unknown


-
Phi
Yes2ISA
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Malaysians for ISA

Section 8(1) in the Internal Security Act states the grounds a person can be detained under the Act.

Summarised, it is basically when (a) person(s) is/are a threat to ;

1. Security of Malaysia or part thereof
2. Maintenance of essential services
   
3. Economic life
   

We Malaysians, the majority of us who put the government of the day in power demand the preservation of the Internal Security Act at its present form as we Malaysians have a right to security, essential services and a good economic life. It is our government's responsibility to protect this rights of ours for the betterment of the Nation we love.

This blog was created for our voice to be heard amongst the calls of irresponsible parties to abolish this Act. In future postings, we will try to inform readers on facts and figures as to why this Act is necessary and why we support the preservation of the Act. Please feel free to ask any questions or to leave a comment but in a civilised manner. Thank you.

Assalamualaikum.

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'Phi'
Yes2ISA
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