Anwar warns of ‘massive shooting spree’ with minister’s ‘shoot first’ remark: PETALING JAYA, Oct 9 — A “shoot first” policy for the police in handling suspected criminals might lead to a “massive shooting spree”, Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim said today. The opposition leader also said that Home Minister Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi, who had reportedly advocated that particular approach to law enforcement, should attend basic law training. “If you have a criminal with pistols, arms and M16s, I don’t think the police should be asked to negotiate,” Anwar told reporters at the PKR headquarters here today. “But you can’t give a blanket statement that you can shoot. For the police personnel on the ground, you’re giving a very dangerous...there’ll be a massive shooting spree,” added the PKR de facto leader. On Saturday, Ahmad Zahid reportedly advocated a “shoot first” policy for the police in dealing with suspected gang members in the wake of a violent crime spree that has resulted in Malays making up the majority of the victims. In his speech at a security briefing event with community leaders in Ayer Keroh, Malacca then, Ahmad Zahid said there was nothing wrong with arresting the over 40,000 known gangsters in the country, half of whom are Indians. Several controversial police shootings in the past have spurred public demand for an Independent Police Complaints and Misconduct Commission (IPCMC), as recommended by the 2005 Royal Commission of Inquiry on the police force, to be set up to monitor police abuse. But Putrajaya has steadfastly refused to implement the IPCMC, pointing to the Enforcement Agency Integrity Commission (EAIC) to investigate police misconduct, despite widespread criticism that the EAIC is toothless. Former de facto law minister Datuk Zaid Ibrahim said yesterday that Malaysia risks becoming a failed state if the police adopts a “shoot first” approach in apprehending criminals. Former Bar Council president Datuk Ambiga Sreenevasan criticised Ahmad Zahid for his purported “racial profiling” and said that the minister was flouting the rule of law by calling for criminals to be shot first. Human rights group Lawyers for Liberty said last Monday that Ahmad Zahid’s “shoot first” comment confirms suspicions of the unwritten policy operating in the police force. In a Parliamentary reply to Segambut MP Lim Lip Eng on September 24, Ahmad Zahid said that the police had fatally shot 124 Malaysian criminals from 2009 to this August, of which 56 were Malays while 41 were Indians. Chinese fatalities stood at 23 while the remainder were non-Malay Bumiputeras. dlvr.it/469y9p
Posted on: Wed, 09 Oct 2013 07:45:53 +0000