This was raised during a meeting on Tuesday with Bukit Aman to discuss human trafficking issues.
“We highlighted the need for the IPCMC to curb cover-ups on human trafficking cases as well as others. It is to look at the general police conduct as well,” Suaram executive director Sevan Doraisamy told FMT.
“There were many policemen who were arrested last year for other cases, so there is a need for the IPCMC. It will help the credibility of the police force.
“They (the police) accepted our suggestion and told us it was not a bad idea and that it will be looked into.”
Civil society groups have been calling for the IPCMC for years, saying the current Enforcement Agency Integrity Commission (EAIC) is an ineffective organisation.
They said the EAIC had failed to stop the deaths of inmates in custody, adding that the police’s power to arrest and detain as well as to use force must come under an independent oversight body to prevent abuse.
The IPCMC was mooted by a 2005 royal commission chaired by former chief justice Mohamed Dzaiddin Abdullah, but the proposal was shot down by the police.
Deputy Prime Minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi told Parliament last March that 1,654 people had died in custody between 2010 and February 2017.
Of these, 1,037 were Malays, 222 were ethnic Chinese, 185 were foreigners, 182 were ethnic Indians, and the remaining 28 were from other ethnicities.
At Tuesday’s meeting, the 12 NGOs also raised the possibility of police officers and other authorities aiding human traffickers.
“We raised the question when police were explaining why the trafficking numbers were still so high. We suggested that there might be some inside men within the authorities who were abetting human traffickers,” Sevan said.
“According to the police, there is no evidence against any officer and no one has been charged so far. One of the difficulties, according to the police, is the lack of information. They need more information and evidence before they can do anything.”
The meeting was also held to provide an update on police action so far in the fight against human trafficking.
“The police explained what their operations were like, the targets they had set and what they had achieved so far.
“We raised our concerns that the number of cases was still high and while there was progress made, more needed to be done,” Sevan added.
It was recently reported that the police were getting the NGOs’ help to engage with human trafficking victims who often avoid the cops.
Deputy Inspector-General of Police Noor Rashid Ibrahim said the NGOs were better at gaining the victims’ trust and getting them to talk.
Human trafficking: Cops seek NGOs’ help to engage with victims