The Malaysian government yesterday released an opposition member of parliament (MP) detained under the country’s draconian Internal Security Act (ISA), her party said.
The arrests of Democratic Action Party (DAP) MP Theresa Kok, a journalist and a well-known blogger brought condemnation from human rights groups and the US.
The ISA allows for indefinite imprisonment without trial.
The government, which has ruled the country for 51 years since independence, is facing the biggest challenge to its political leadership after the opposition won a record number of parliamentary seats in elections in March.
The arrests were made last weekend, but the journalist has already been freed.
The government also issued notices to three newspapers which could result in them being banned after one reported comments from a junior politician from the ruling party in which he called the country’s ethnic Chinese “immigrants” and “squatters.”
“She [Teresa Kok] was released after nearly a week following irresistible pressure from the people,” said Lim Kit Siang, a leader in the mostly Chinese DAP.
“It shows the ISA was used for political whims of select few in government to show that they are powerful. It was a tit for tat move,” Lim said.
Kok was arrested on allegations she wanted to ban the Muslim call for prayer in her constituency, which she has strongly denied.
Malaysian Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi had defended the arrests, saying they were used only when there was a threat to security and public order and that the three arrests had been made by the police, not on instructions from the government.
In related news, Malaysian Deputy Prime Minister Najib Razak abruptly scrapped a trip to the Middle East yesterday amid deepening political uncertainty sparked by opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim’s attempt to seize power.
An aide to Najib denied he postponed his overseas tour because of politics, saying the deputy leader wanted to remain in the country over next week to tackle his new job as finance minister.
Abdullah relinquished his finance ministry portfolio to Najib on Wednesday as part of a protracted power handover. Abdullah has promised to step down before 2010 amid escalating demands from his ruling party for his swift retirement.
Najib was scheduled to leave the country yesterday to visit Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and New York, but he canceled the Middle East leg and will only head for New York on Wednesday for the UN General Assembly meeting, said an aide who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to make public statements.
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