Pua: Maria’s travel ban, ‘outrageous’ abuse of power

KUALA LUMPUR: The government’s crude attempts to restrict travel rights are an “outrageous abuse of power”, which only serves to prove the critics’ allegations of Malaysia transforming itself to be a “police state run by a tin-pot dictatorship”, charged Petaling Jaya Utara MP Tony Pua in a statement.

The MP, who is also DAP National Publicity Secretary, was commenting on Bersih 2.0 Chief Maria Chin Abdullah being barred from leaving the country. She was on her way to South Korea to receive the prestigious Gwangju Prize Human Rights Award, an award previously bestowed upon Aung Sang Suu Kyi and Xanana Gusmao.

Even if it’s true that the law gives the government such dictatorial rights, a government who prides itself on transparency and accountability will nevertheless attempt to justify its actions, he added.

He warned that the lack of transparency and accountability only points to a government which was intent on abusing its powers to repress critics and dissidents.

At the same time, he argued, even if a law grants the authority the relevant discretion to exercise its powers, such discretion under any democratic regime governed by the rule of law must be exercised reasonably. “Such discretion was never meant to be abused according to the authorities’ whims and fancies.”

He wonders why the government doesn’t just stop all Malaysians from travelling overseas since it does not have to give any reason under the Immigration Act.

Pua was expressing disappointment with Deputy Home Minister Nur Jazlan Mohamed deciding that there was absolutely “no need for the government to be transparent and accountable in the exercise of its powers”.

Nur Jazlan said the government need not have to give reasons for barring Chin from leaving Malaysia. “It’s a power given under the Immigration Act. We don’t need to explain why. We are not compelled to give a reason,” Pua quoted Nur Jazlan as saying.

The MP reminded that he had been barred from leaving the country since 24 July 2015. “The government and the Director-General of Immigration had similarly refused to provide me with any reason as to why I have been barred from leaving the country.”

It was only when the decision was challenged in court that Immigration provided an affidavit which disclosed that he had his travel rights restricted because he was allegedly under police investigation for “activities detrimental to parliamentary democracy” which carries up to a 20-year prison sentence.

Even so, pointed out Pua, he had only been called in for questioning by the police as a witness for their investigations and had never been informed by any parties that he was a suspect.