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©The Star (Used by permission)

• Discharge for trio
• 105 demonstrators still in custody

SEREMBAN: MIC president Datuk Seri S. Samy Vellu said he was “deeply saddened but not angry” with the Hindu Rights’ Action Force (Hindraf) for organising Sunday's illegal rally.

Samy Vellu said Hindraf could have taken a better approach to air its grievances and should not have accused the MIC of failing the Indian community.

“They must follow the law. In this country, we are very open ... I have never seen a government which is more open.

“The Prime Minister (Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi) has never shut his eyes or ears to their plight ... but they should have abided by the law,” he said to reporters after opening the RM1.3 million SJK (T) Ladang Seremban in Sg Gadut near here.

Hindraf defied a court order to go ahead with the illegal rally of thousands that was dispersed by police using tear gas and water cannons.

During the incident, 241 people were arrested but of those, 105 were released after their statements were recorded.

Samy Vellu said that although he had offered to meet Hindraf leaders after they forwarded a memorandum to the Prime Minister weeks before the rally, they had refused to meet him.

“I told them that I was prepared to see them but I was told that they wished to deal directly with Umno. So what can the MIC do?” he said adding that Hindraf leaders submitted a one-page memo to the Prime Minister about the community's problems over the past 50 years.

Asked if there was merit in Hindraf’s demands, Samy Vellu said problems should be discussed within the system.

“When we discuss among ourselves, we can quarrel as much as we want. But why must we raise our displeasure outside the system?” he asked.

On comments by newly-formed Malaysian Indian United Party president Datuk Nalla Karuppan that the party would work with the Barisan Nasional, Samy Vellu said anyone could do this.

“Working is one thing but getting into the Barisan is a different thing.

“Like I have always said, there will only be one party representing the Indian community in the Barisan and that is the MIC,” he said.

Meanwhile, in Petaling Jaya, MIC deputy president Datuk G. Palanivel said the party would not gamble on the future of the Indian community by urging them to take their grievances to the streets.

He said this was because a large majority of Malaysian Indians depended on the Government for the community’s development.

“We believe we cannot achieve much by going to the streets.

“The cause you struggle for should not only be justified but must be pursued through legitimate means,” he said in a press statement.

Discharge for trio

By Wani Muthiah

KLANG: The three Hindu Rights Action Force (Hindraf) members charged with sedition at the Sessions Court here last Friday were given a discharge not amounting to an acquittal by the same court yesterday.

The trio had been charged under the Sedition Act for allegedly uttering words to incite hatred in their speeches at a gathering in Batang Berjuntai on Nov 16.

In delivering her decision, Judge Zunaidah Mohd Idris said the charge against lawyers P. Uthayakumar, P. Waythamoorthy and V.S. Ganapathi Rao appeared to be ambiguous because the prosecution had failed to provide original transcripts of the Tamil speeches.

Only uncertified Malay translations of the speeches were attached to the charge sheets.

According to Zunaidah, the prosecution should have transcribed the speeches in the original language first before translating them into Malay and an accredited translator must also certify the transcription and translation.

Since the translation was not certified, it could not be known if it was an accurate version of the Tamil speeches made by the three defendants.

All these factors, said Zunaidah, resulted in the court being unclear and unconvinced about the charge brought against the three.

She said she was unable to see the focal point of the charge even after thoroughly perusing all its pros and cons.

Deputy Public Prosecutor Ishak Mohd Yusof, who received a sound thrashing from the defence team, made up of six lawyers including M. Manoharan, A. Sivanesan, Gobind Singh Deo and G.K. Ganesan, said the original transcripts would be provided during the trial.

Ishak said there were precedents that supported the prosecution’s contention that it was not necessary to provide transcripts of the original speech at the plea-recording stage.

He said the original transcripts would be tendered when hearing began and the translator would be called in as a witness to defend the accuracy of his translation.

Gobind Singh asked why the prosecution had to wait until the trial to produce the transcripts of the original speech.

Ganesan explained to the court that a Malay word had multiple meanings in Tamil and said this further questioned the accuracy of the charge as it was based on uncertified translations of the original speeches.

Meanwhile, Manoharan noted that the prosecution had failed to adhere to Zunaidah’s instructions on Friday to attach the Tamil transcripts of the speeches to the charge sheet and asked why it had failed to follow the judge’s instructions.

Ramdas Tikamdas and Amer Hamzah Arshad held watching briefs for the National Human Rights Society (Hakam) and the Bar Council respectively.

Ramdas said that given the obvious ambiguity of the charge and the prosecution's non-compliance of a direct order, the court should lean towards a decision that upheld the fundamental liberties enshrined in the Federal Constitution.

PKR advisor Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim was also at the courts to see Uthayakumar, Waythamoorthy, and Ganapathi.

Later, the Hindraf leaders addressed about 3,000 supporters who had gathered outside the court complex.

Uthayakumar said he had merely presented a slideshow in Batang Berjuntai showing what was actually happening on the ground and what was being said by those at the top.

“They cannot accept this and decided to call it seditious,” he said.

Waythamoorthy, who had refused bail on Friday as a sign of protest, said the movement had planned the rally as a peaceful gathering to hand over a petition for the Queen but the police had refused to issue a permit.

“Bus permits for those travelling from outstation were also cancelled.”

105 demonstrators still in custody

By Kuldeep S. Jessy

KUALA LUMPUR: A total of 105 people who took part in the protests on Sunday are still being detained while 24 were released last night.

Federal CID director Comm Datuk Christopher Wan Soo Kee said those still in custody would be released on bail today. It was reported that 136 people were picked up during the protests at Jalan Ampang here and Batu Caves on Sunday which was attended by thousands. Another 105 had their details recorded.

“We released the others on Sunday and Monday after police took down their statements,” he said when met at Bukit Aman yesterday. Those picked up were remanded at the police training college on Sunday.

A court registrar assisted in the remand proceedings at the college. The process was witnessed by Bar Council members and lawyers for the Hindu Rights Action Force (Hindraf) which organised the protest.

Comm Wan said investigations against those detained would be from all angles with a view of charging them under the Police Act for illegal assembly.

They would also be investigated under Section 188 of the Penal Code for disobeying the court’s order not to a hold a gathering in front of the British Embassy.

“We will also investigate them for other offences and forward the investigation papers to the Deputy Public Prosecutor for further action,” Comm Wan said.

When asked why Hindraf leaders, including P. Uthayakumar, who were present at the demonstration were not arrested for flouting the court order, he said the leaders could not be detected at the early stages of the demonstration.

“They only appeared towards the end,” he added.

On whether the Hindraf leaders would be arrested, Comm Wan said that depended on the outcome of their investigations.

Comm Wan also said police were investigating allegations posted on the Police Watch website that a 20-year-old youth had been beaten to death during the demonstration.

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