Nat Tan: Updates, questions and rant July 14, 2007

Posted by elizabethwong in Current Affairs

(Updated: Nat’s colleagues speak up: John Lee’s touching piece here; Bob’s photos of the vigil here, and his chronology here.)

Kinda chronological and long-winded (too tired to edit – expect mega typos everywhere, and a bit of swearing – will edit the latter out *after* Nat is freed), some key questions including the excuse used to take Nat Tan in.

Nat was taken in by 3 police officers in plain clothes, who according to his office, were taking him to Bukit Aman. They were too shocked to even take photos or names of the guys.

Latheefa (Lat), a lawyer told Nat to stay put until she and William Leong, another lawyer arrived. By the time, she got there, Nat could not be found and his phone was unanswered.

Lat picked up Li Tsin and I and got to Bukit Aman around 6-ish. They denied all knowledge of his arrest and said he was not in the building. They even asked, are you sure they were police officers?

By that time, smelling the usual police BS, I’d lost my patience, standing there for an hour. So I had the Suaram office put out our standard urgent alert on this sorts of incommunicado arrests, and had it sent to all international human rights groups including the UN and World Organisation Against Torture. Yap, the Suaram head, had just touched down at KLIA, and he okayed it.

We were told to lodge a police report on possible abduction. We insisted that we lodged it at Bukit Aman, but they said go to IPD Dang Wangi. By that time, Jed (2020freelunch) and Tian Chua arrived.

In the end, two cops came from there, took Li Tsin’s report. Both of us went into the patrol car, with the whirly blue lights, which drove us to Jalan Stadium to lodge another report. They then assigned an officer, Saiful, from IPD Kelana Jaya on the case and told her to GO THERE to give a statement (WTF).

Meanwhile we were bored so we surfed on the police’s computer at the reception area, while gawking at the open network system and reading their files … bodoh. We decided to have dinner instead and return to Bukit Aman for the demo. My handphone and her’s had died by then. In the meantime, Lat had received information that the Investigating Officer is DSP Victor (016 304 4669). When she finally got through to him, we found out he had just gotten off the plane from Sydney (WTF). Victor said, they were investigating under the Penal Code.

Lat then found out another fella from the Cyber-crime Division, Bukit Aman, ACP Tn Mohd Kamaruddin (019 6000 135), was in charge. At 10 pm, we were informed that they were holding him after all, and that he was being investigated under the Officials Secrets Act (WTF).

15 min later, we were told he was at Jalan Dato Onn. The family, Li Tsin and William went ahead while we continued our protest-vigil as we had four people (Sim from Anwar Ibrahim’s office, Tian, Shamsul Iskandar, lawyer and head of KeADILan Youth and Yap from Suaram) inside Bukit Aman trying to squeeze more information, and to let them know – we mean business . Some 30 people came for the vigil, even people who didn’t know Nat! We had a few speeches from Amnesty, Suaram, KeADILan Youth, his friends etc.; candles and banners.

Once everyone was out, we proceeded to Jalan Dato Onn. The parents still didn’t get to see him or go in. About 20 minutes later, we were informed he was brought to IPD Dang Wangi – right where we were, lodging the ‘we fear he’s kidnapped’ report! (WTF WTF!)

So all of us rushed there and crowded the reception room. Nat’s 4th legal counsel, senior rights lawyer Sivarasa Rasiah joined us. Finally, the police station confirmed Nat was brought in at around 10.30 pm. They didn’t allow the lawyers to meet Nat.

We negotiated for the family (and Li Tsin) to take some basics bought by Yap like toothbrush, toothpaste, face towel, soap and a bottle of water (yep, no drinking water inside). Li Tsin brought in a small note from all of us – “we love you, we support you, stay cool”; a big ‘heart’ sign, and my line in bright red ink, “Don’t saya word to the cops, say you will only say in court”.

Then Li Tsin came out asking for the packet of claypot chicken rice as Nat hadn’t eaten since he was arrested! (WTF)

When they came out, Li Tsin said, Nat asked for sandwiches (aiyo!) and he said he was alright.

Nat was informed by the police he has been arrested for investigation over a comment left on one of his blog posts, which put the link pointing to a website which reported on the deputy minister for Internal Security, Johari Bahrum, being involved in fee-for-freedom. (Yep – the same minister exonerated by the ACA on Thursday.)

Hogwash.

The police at the station said, Section 420 of the Penal Code. Yep, another change.

We don’t know what will happen to Nat. Tonight he has to sleep at Dang Wangi which is one of the most notorious lockups in this part of town. The police refuses to tell us whether he will be freed on Saturday or he will be remanded up to ten days.

Now the questions:-

1. If the police wanted to know about this alleged commentator, they could have just summoned him for a witness statement. There is no need to barge into his office at 4.30 pm, knowing full well it’s the weekend and courts are closed, and arrest him with his notebook. So why do this?

2. Furthermore, he was handcuffed and taken to his home where the police ‘arrested’ his monitor and CPU. Who on earth confiscates the monitor? (Morons)

3. Why did the police not leave their names with the office when they took Nat? Why was no receipt of the confiscated monitor and CPU left in the house?

4. A police report was apparently lodged at IPD Dang Wangi against Nat. Who lodged this report? I believe it’s someone with connections otherwise the police wouldn’t get off their fat asses, like the way they deal with regular citizen’s police reports. I have a short list of suspects and one of them is a blogger. In any case, I will hunt you down and hand you over to those who specialise in painful things. That’s what you get when you F with one of us.

5. Lastly, this thing about the blog commentator is pathetic. If you are F-king cyber-crime division, you’d know that’s not how you want to find out who the commentator is. It’s F-king stored in the server, not your home CPU or notebook, you moron.

I’m even thinking this has nothing to do with Johari. He and the IGP hate each other. It’s just a pithy excuse to sniff through a blogger’s files, modus operandi, the way they think and use the internet for social and political activism.

Those a-holes up there are evidently very afraid of the internet. So they come get one of us. It means bloggers are doing a bloody fantastic job. So it’s time we make them more s-scared, more worried and more sleepless over what else we will unleash in the coming days.

Man – they ain’t seen nothing yet.

And as for the Royal Malaysian Police (puke) – Thanks once again for proving so evidently that you are incompetent, lazy, unconcerned about the real crimes committed by crooks and corrupt politicians, and absolutely undeserving of the salary raise and any public respect.

See this finger? Here’s another one.

(Sorry – this is the rudest post ever – but I am really and still very very VERY angry. Even unleashed a string of Canto-expletives accidentally in front of Nat’s parents when a Special Branch photographer – see below – took all our photos – yeah instead of catching snatch thieves, robbers, mat rempits etc. Now if only I had a match…..)

Oy ugly – you need SKII la!