Malaysian Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi defended a decision to detain five ethnic Indian activists under a tough security law as in the interests of public order, state media reported.
The five leaders of the Hindu Rights Action Force (Hindraf), pushing for an end to alleged discrimination of ethnic Indians were picked up on Thursday and ordered held under the Internal Security Act (ISA).
The controversial law allows for indefinite detention without trial.
"Our action is justified. We have to take action if something undesirable to national security and public safety happens," he was quoted as saying by the official Bernama news agency late on Thursday.
"I am duty-bound to act because the people want the government to take action. The people don't want to see this country in chaos," he said.
Abdullah, who is also the minister responsible for internal security, said national security concerns overrode freedom of expression.
"Between the freedom of expression and public safety, I will give importance to public safety. If you want to speak up, you must follow procedures," he said.
"This is not a nation that shuts the mouth of everyone. The people are not dumb. If we want freedom, we must be responsible. Freedom cannot be given without responsibility," he said.
Opposition parties and human rights groups, who have campaigned for the abolishment of the ISA, slammed the government's actions.
The US has also called for the five detainees to be provided with fair treatment.
Archeologists in Peru on Thursday said they found the 5,000-year-old remains of a noblewoman at the sacred city of Caral, revealing the important role played by women in the oldest center of civilization in the Americas. “What has been discovered corresponds to a woman who apparently had elevated status, an elite woman,” archeologist David Palomino said. The mummy was found in Aspero, a sacred site within the city of Caral that was a garbage dump for more than 30 years until becoming an archeological site in the 1990s. Palomino said the carefully preserved remains, dating to 3,000BC, contained skin, part of the
‘WATER WARFARE’: A Pakistani official called India’s suspension of a 65-year-old treaty on the sharing of waters from the Indus River ‘a cowardly, illegal move’ Pakistan yesterday canceled visas for Indian nationals, closed its airspace for all Indian-owned or operated airlines, and suspended all trade with India, including to and from any third country. The retaliatory measures follow India’s decision to suspend visas for Pakistani nationals in the aftermath of a deadly attack by shooters in Kashmir that killed 26 people, mostly tourists. The rare attack on civilians shocked and outraged India and prompted calls for action against their country’s archenemy, Pakistan. New Delhi did not publicly produce evidence connecting the attack to its neighbor, but said it had “cross-border” links to Pakistan. Pakistan denied any connection to
TRUMP EFFECT: The win capped one of the most dramatic turnarounds in Canadian political history after the Conservatives had led the Liberals by more than 20 points Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney yesterday pledged to win US President Donald Trump’s trade war after winning Canada’s election and leading his Liberal Party to another term in power. Following a campaign dominated by Trump’s tariffs and annexation threats, Carney promised to chart “a new path forward” in a world “fundamentally changed” by a US that is newly hostile to free trade. “We are over the shock of the American betrayal, but we should never forget the lessons,” said Carney, who led the central banks of Canada and the UK before entering politics earlier this year. “We will win this trade war and
Armed with 4,000 eggs and a truckload of sugar and cream, French pastry chefs on Wednesday completed a 121.8m-long strawberry cake that they have claimed is the world’s longest ever made. Youssef El Gatou brought together 20 chefs to make the 1.2 tonne masterpiece that took a week to complete and was set out on tables in an ice rink in the Paris suburb town of Argenteuil for residents to inspect. The effort overtook a 100.48m-long strawberry cake made in the Italian town of San Mauro Torinese in 2019. El Gatou’s cake also used 350kg of strawberries, 150kg of sugar and 415kg of
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