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New Straits Times
by Chow Kum Hor
Should lawyers be allowed to advertise more freely? CHOW KUM HOR looks at
both sides of the debate.
THE bad Press about the police signals a greater push for transparency and
openness in the force. But this should not be used to push the law enforcers
into a corner, writes CHOW KUM HOR.
THESE days, no news is good news for the police. After hogging the headlines for
all the wrong reasons over the past three months, the men and women of the force
could do with a reprieve from the media spotlight.
In November, there was the nude-squat controversy, which had all the ingredients
of bad Press: nudity, claims of cover-ups, questionable detention procedures, a
hidden camera- phone and diplomatic red-face to boot.
Then came "Baldgate", when 11 elderly men had their heads shaved by the police
for playing mahjong in a coffee shop in Kajang during Chinese New Year.
In May last year, the Royal Commission to Enhance the Operations and Management
of the Royal Malaysian Police also opened up a can of worms with allegations
that a police officer had assets amounting to RM34 million.
The diatribes are not seasonal. Public cynicism will continue to simmer beneath
the surface, with interest groups and some politicians waiting to jump on the
police's next blunder.
But in the relentless public bashing, many lose track of the one issue that
matters most: The police must stay the course in fighting crime, notwithstanding
the outcry for reforms.
The good news is that some people, like retired Sarawak police commissioner
Datuk Seri Yuen Yuet Leng, think the cops, who have "all in all, done an
excellent job", have also taken the criticisms in stride.
A few cops on the take do not make the whole force rotten, just as a few
dishonest lawyers do not render the entire legal profession unscrupulous, he
said.
"The fact that the police are now making statements we never imagined they would
have made in the past about openness and transparency is a good evolution in the
democratic process," says Yuen, who played a key role in fighting communist
terrorists in the 1950s and 1960s.
These include the setting up of the Independent Police Complaints and Misconduct
Commission (IPCMC).
However, the intense media scrutiny has undoubtedly put the police on the
defensive and may have driven their morale a few notches down.
Bukit Aman public relations officer Superintendent Mohamad Daud laments the
sweeping statements in the media, which have been unfair to the overwhelming
number of honest and dedicated policemen.
No good policeman, he adds, would like to be lumped together with his or her
errant comrades.
"When the public start to think that all policemen are corrupt, the whole force
is affected," says a traffic police constable in Kuala Lumpur.
"The bad Press has affected our morale but we will continue to do our job."
He recalls an incident where two youths on motorcycles sped past him shouting,
"Polis rasuah!" (Police are corrupt) just as he was flagging down a car for
beating the traffic lights, not long after the nude-squat controversy.
"I was taken aback by how brazen these people had become."
Having an armed, uniformed unit such as the police on the defensive has not gone
down well with law and order advocates such as Umno Youth's Datuk Norza Zakaria,
who feel that a motivated force is crucial in keeping our streets safe.
Norza is particularly perturbed by news reports that patrons, including
foreigners, of an entertainment outlet raided by the police recently mocked the
officers by doing the ear-squat.
The media blitz has certainly rattled the police, if only a little.
Recently, Kuala Lumpur police chief Datuk Mustafa Abdullah directed his
personnel to apply the letter of the law in dealing with lawbreakers.
Yuen, a Special Branch deputy director during the communist insurgency, says
this is the result of a "siege mentality" when the police are attacked from all
sides.
Concerned over the police being turned into a punching bag, Umno Youth has come
to its defence.
The wing has expressed reservations about the setting up of the IPCMC - a stand
that goes against the grain of public opinion.
"There are already enough avenues for the public to lodge complaints," explains
Norza. "What we have is a functioning police force. Just because we want change,
we should not undo whatever good work we have done over the years."
Calling on the Government not to succumb to public pressure, Norza says there
are other ways to stop the rot in the force.
One is to provide the personnel with a better working environment, including
conducive living quarters and better infrastructure.
The Government has allocated RM2.5 billion for housing and RM2.8 billion for new
equipment.
Only after a First World infrastructure is in place, will a First World
mentality come in, he argues.
Senior lawyer and New Straits Times columnist Roger Tan wants the Government to
quickly make clear laws on police detention and criminal procedures - something
the Royal Commission had also proposed.
For example, he says although asking detainees to do nude- squats is not
provided for under the law, it has been practised for years.
Tan says that another "vague" legislation is Rule 9A of the Lockup Rules 1953
concerning detainees having their heads shaved.
It reads, "every prisoner shall have his hair cut close", but leaves law
enforcers none the wiser on what "cut close" means.
Such ambiguities give room for the public to question the police's wisdom in
enforcing the law, sparking off outcries such as whether or not detainees should
have their crowning glory shaved and whether the nude-squat is indeed legal.
But even the most perfect laws will come to naught if enforcement is lacking.
This is where the frontliners in the police force come into the picture.
"The image of the police force does not rest with the Inspector-General of
Police (IGP), the CPOs (State police chiefs) or the OCPDs (district police
chiefs)," says Yuen.
"It is the OCS (station chiefs) who come into constant interaction with the
public. These are the people who must be selected carefully and who must lead in
setting good examples."
Yuen recalls an arrest operation 33 years ago in a major town involving 50
people, including a Tan Sri, Datuks, professionals and commercial dignitaries,
for allegedly donating money to the communists.
Instead of despatching soldiers dressed to kill and handcuffing these suspects,
Special Branch officers escorted each of them to the police station, all done in
a civil manner.
Yuen says the incident illustrates one point: honest enforcement can be
effectively carried out.
"If the frontline policemen and policewomen are corrupt and not conscientious,
even the best public relations exercise and catchy slogans will not help," adds
Yuen.
Bukit Aman has also directed all district police chiefs to attend human rights
courses, while junior officers will also be taught revised human rights modules.
The Government is also mulling a campaign to cast the police in a more positive
light.
Deputy Information Minister Chia Kwang Chye, who has just been transferred from
the Internal Security Ministry, says he will discuss with the minister how best
to project a proper image of the force.
But as far as the police are concerned, they have to start closing the gap
between heightened public expectations and delivery of service.
IGP Tan Sri Bakri Omar last week directed his officers to waste no time
implementing the proposals contained in the Royal Commission Report.
Failing to implement the recommendations, he added, amounted to disrespect to
the Government.
So far, some 80 per cent of the 125 recommendations have been put in place,
although it has done little to pacify public restlessness over the police's
supposed foot-dragging.
To this, Norza says: "Rome was not built in a day. As much as the public is
entitled to criticise weaknesses in the police, they should realise that the
cops have done a good job. We don't want to unravel what they have achieved so
far."
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