KUALA LUMPUR: Eight people, including four lawyers, claimed trial in a
Sessions Court here to charges of taking part in an illegal assembly on Sunday
and disobeying police orders to disperse.
They are lawyers Amer Hamzah Arshad, Latheefa Beebi Koya, N. Surendran and R.
Sivarasa, and human rights activists Eric Paulsen, Johnny Andu @ Abu Bakar Adnan,
Nooraza Othman and Ashraf Ali Sadakathullah.
They were accused of jointly committing the offences between 8.10am and 8.50am
in front of the Kamdar building in Jalan Tuanku Abdul Rahman here.
Alternatively, they were charged with participating and disobeying an order to
disperse by police.
A fifth lawyer Edmund Bon, 33, who is also Bar Council’s Human Rights committee
chairman, was charged separately for obstructing Kuala Lumpur City Hall officers
from carrying out their duties.
He had allegedly prevented them from taking down the Human Rights Day banners
just outside the Bar Council building in Leboh Pasar Besar here at noon on
Sunday. He also claimed trial.
All nine were brought to a packed courtroom at about noon amidst cheers.
They received standing ovation from the 150-odd crowd made up mostly of lawyers
as they were brought into the dock. Sessions judge S. Komathy released all nine
on bail.
The eight posted their RM2,000 bail while Bon paid the RM1,000 bail granted to
him.
The judge also set Jan 28 for hearing of the case involving the eight while
Bon’s case would be heard on March 3.
If convicted, the eight can face a maximum of six months’ jail or fine or both
while Bon can face a maximum of three months' jail, a fine of up to RM1,000, or
both.
When opposing bail for Bon, Attorney-General Tan Sri Abdul Gani Patail argued
that he had committed a serious offence.
“If the public at large is defiant of the authority, the country will go into
disorder,” he said, to loud laughter from the public gallery.
As for the eight, Abdul Gani also said that they might repeat the offence if
given bail.
In reply, Komathy said: “Why do you say so when the only notorious person in the
dock is Sivarasa?”
Abdul Gani then informed the court that the group had continued with the walk
despite all the authority’s advice given through the media.
“If they dare to defy despite the repeated advice and the Bar Council not
approving the walk, what is there to stop them from repeating the offence?” he
asked.
2012 Hotel Corporate Rates Attending seminars? Going for a holiday? Click on the link above to check out the list of hotel corporate rates for Members of the Bar, which is updated regularly.
Talk on Intellectual Property Law (10 Feb 2012) Organised by the Selangor Bar Committee, the talk on “Intellectual Property Law” will take place at 5:00 pm, at the Selangor Bar Committee Auditorium, on 10 Feb 2012 (Friday). The talk will feature Bahari Yeow Tien Hong. Click on the link above for more details.
Seminar on the Fundamentals of Bankruptcy Proceedings (21 Feb 2012) Organised by the Kuala Lumpur Bar Professional Development Committee, the seminar on “The Fundamentals of Bankruptcy Proceedings”, featuring Sanjeev Kumar Rasiah, will take place at 3:00 pm, at the Kuala Lumpur Bar Auditorium, on 21 Feb 2012 (Tuesday). Click on the link above for more details.
Seminar on the Fundamentals of Conveyancing (24 Feb 2012) Organised by the Kuala Lumpur Bar Professional Development Committee, this seminar featuring Jeremiah R Gurusamy will take place at 3:00 pm, at the Kuala Lumpur Bar Auditorium, on 24 Feb 2012 (Friday). Click on the link above for more details.
Mediation Skills Training Course (29 Feb to 4 Mar 2012) Organised by Bar Council, the Mediation Skills Training Course will take place at 8:30 am to 5:30 pm, at Raja Aziz Addruse Auditorium, Bar Council, on 29 Feb to 4 Mar 2012 (Wednesday to Sunday). Deadline for registration and payment is 17 Feb 2012 (Friday). Click on the link above for more details.
Talk on “Land Fraud: An Australian Perspective” (13 Mar 2012) Organised by IGIL, GSGSG and UUM COLGIS, this free talk featuring Quintin George Rozario of Delta Law, Brisbane, Australia, will take place at 9:00 am, at Dewan Seminar A, Pusat Konvensyen, Universiti Utara Malaysia, Kedah, on 13 Mar 2012 (Tuesday). To RSVP, contact Mr Abutt (04-928 4397; abutt@uum.edu.my).
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Circular No 023/2012: Talk on ISO 9001 | 2008 Quality Management System Certification
