Thats how it used to work in this country. Different standards for different folks , all in the name of law and order-.Even amongst criminals , standards apply ,you know , i.e. let's say you were a "datuk" or a VVIP ( never mind the fact that you kud be a lord in the underworld) but you have millions to throw so can easily afford to buy a title with the fortune u have and even a permit for a firearm, afterall it is a dangerous occupation you are in ,you do need to protect yourself) then one day you discover someone stealing from you , amount is paltry but principle of the thing is heavy, can't afford to lose face, so shoot the thief in cold blood , as a message you r not to be messed with , Yup , shoot 1st , cos this is malaysia after all , murder ,cold blooded or otherwise can be dealt with to one's favour , if you know how to work the system ?
(above is a loose reference to actual incident in KL where a Chinese lad was shot by his employer Datuk for theft)
Which brings to mind another point . Now if you were a nobody but in possesion of a firearm,without a permit for whatever reason , criminal or not (it's another issue ) back to the hypothesis , you get busted .
Well ,guess how the interrogation will go with you !
As for the datuk above , he 'd probaly be invited to the station to record his statement , tea or coffee will be served with goreng-goreng snacks,of course , more convenient if interrogation is done at IO's office, has air conditioning, or datuk isn't going to be very cooperative ,being hot and uncomfortable.
Then there is the alternative method of interrogation ,which will likely be applied on the former .
Apart from the initial " physical " introduction to what's gonna come for the next 7 days ,( section 117 of criminal code allows a max period of 7 days detention for investigation by police before they decide on what to charge the perp ) there are few options to choose from to conduct an "interview" by the PDRM,
Let's see , I've heard about the 'sittin on a iceblock stark naked" or "phonebook technic" and am told is quite effective in many instances,
Have been told about "using the rotan or thick rubber rod on the soles of the feet while handcuffed and suspended by a pole inserted under your knees ,above your cuffed hands which of course are hugging both your feet . . and in extreme stubborn cases "rubber band on testes,perhaps.." OUCH...!!" WEll, they do have 14 days to decide how to conduct the investigation , HMMMM ,all designed to not leave obvious marks of the treatment ,
B.t.w depends on your grade ,ya.? Not everybody qualifies to receive such specialized service , mainly reserved for the uneducated , illiterate , skint , illegal alien or those who dont have connections to anybody influential. These are the ones who wont have any repercussions to deal with or answerable to, no matter what.
Safe , as it were.to inflict as you please , !
Surprisingly , it is a fairly accurate assumption . Marjority of those who received the more specialized treatment are from the criminalized sector therefore most don't think about justice, they just want it to end, they will confess to anything the cops want them to during the sessions..hoping
it will shorten the process...Sadly ,most of them just takes the dish whereas others who have been thru it before just take it for granted that it comes with the territory and just accepts it ,they know exactly what to expect and grit teeth and takes it as it is.
Some of them even know about basic rights and that those rights are being trampled on yet they just don't know how to or are reluctant to air the grievances, knowing even if they do , most won't proceed far.
To be fair , sometimes vicious robbers or rapist or violent criminals
incriminate themselves during the interogations and the police are to be commended for making streets slightly safer. So the million dollar question will be, can the extreme methods be justified by that?
All these years of applying the methods ,one wonders , has anything changed.? Surely by now
they would have gathered enough experience through constant repetition of the tecnics to gradually refine it into a art or skill or formulated a more controlled method to this madness.
Hit and run ,miss ,trial and error ,etc.would have prompted recognizance of shortcomings , weaknesses and strengths of the methods employed.
Yet , seems they have lost direction .The current generation of top ranking officers seems to have lost the art of civilized torture.( If there is such a thing). There are lines that should be drawn and never crossed when it comes to dealing with suspects in custody.
The skill of subtle restraint doesn't exist to the current batch of cops. What there is , a bunch of barbaric , sadistic lunatics who will bash anything that comes their way just because they can. Not so much as to extract information but more to make a good impression on their superiors that they are a mean tough s.o.b.
So that they will be considered for a promotion in rank when time comes.
A lot of these low ranking police personnel are actually from similar backgrounds, some of them running with the gangsters before joining the ranks so it isn't hard to see why they behave as they do. Same cultural mindset of the criminals or gangsters they rough up ,the "taiko" mentality.
More alarming is that they may influence the other more gentile and decent of our boys in blue to act as they do , thinking that , it is the most efficient way of getting results. And that is how it has always been done by the big boys.
And sad to say , even the higher ranked officers , supposedly to be of a better more educated and civilized mindset , because of a higher education, trained in the police academy to inculcate a better moral fibre and discipline , to be leaders.
But the fact is , they are the main acccomplices , just by tacit ignorance , as if the sadistic barbarism of their subordinates is condoned ,they seem to be encouraging the acts.
They are the main culprits . They should be shot !
Horrifyingly in Malaysia ,this sickening state of affair seems to go up all the way along the chain of command.
It just takes one person (the head honcho) to make an executive decision to revamp and it will get filtered down as long as the top dog shows full commitment and make examples of some really bad apples as a deterrent.
Poor unfortunate M. Kugan and Dharmendran weren't the only persons actually to have paid such a high price for their alleged involvement in criminal activities.
If we remember the "maybank incident "number of years ago . Another individual was also alleged to have been tortured to death in detention, undergoing interrogation , due to the intense pressure from the public and establishment to solve the crime.
Can you imagine , Malaysian police , at a point not long ago,used to be acknowledged as one of the more efficient forces in the world , from their high percentage of crime solving in the country .
Under Tan Sri Rahim Noor ,who expertly manuevered the force away from the scandals of corruption , evaded controversy and concentrated on policing the country. Its isn't that ,there was no corruption or abuse and excesses in the force ( this was era of Mahathirism ), no difference then and now , just done very low profile that not many made a fuss over. All were cleverly diverted to other issues.
Point being , in spite of , you have to admit , efficiency was there.The game of cops and robbers was played effectively and more importantly , many undesirable criminal elements of society that could possibly put everyday law abiding citizens in harms way, was removed.
Looking back , it actually felt safer then ,in comparison to now, the police were actually policing the streets rather than being used as a tentacle to silence dissent and intimidate the innocents, law abiding citizens didn't feel intimidated or worried about their basic rights being infringed, or terrified of being a victim to crime in the streets and at their homes. Crooks actually felt fear and
respect for the cops.Which in those days had the impression of being a non political
institution.
But then of course , these was during the infancy period of the internet in Malaysia..Blogs and You Tube and other media did not have as much impact on the mood of things as they do now.
