The Human Rights Commission of Malaysia (Suhakam) and Suara Rakyat Malaysia (Suaram), in a joint press conference today, said no child should be subjected to any detention without trial.

A total of 142 children are known to have been held in custody under the Prevention of Crimes Act (Poca) and 17 under the Security Offences (Special Measures) Act (Sosma). However, the exact number of children still under detention is unknown as some have been released.

“If there is evidence of their involvement in criminal activities, they should be allowed a fair trial in the court,” Suaram executive director Sevan Doraisamy said.

Anyone below 18 falls into the children category.

He also questioned the use of heavy laws — usually for use against hardcore criminals — by investigation officers (IO) to punish children, instead of charging them in the court.

“We urge the government to release all juveniles detained under Poca. Release those who are still in prisons or detention centres, and for those with electronic monitoring devices (EMDs), release them fully.

“We also urge that the IOs be investigated for using Poca instead of other laws dedicated to handle children.

“When it comes to children, the government should not require an expert to tell them that they should not be detaining any child under security laws,” Sevan said.

The children who have been released should also be rehabilitated after the trauma they would have experienced under detention.

Suaram legal adviser Farida Mohamad added that some of the children who had been released were still monitored with an EMD and were not allowed to carry their normal blue-coloured identity card.

“Instead, they have to hold a brown-coloured identification card usually issued to Poca detainees, called MyPoca, instead of MyKad,” she said, adding that the cards and EMD made them more vulnerable to discrimination when they tried to reintegrate into society.

Last July 19, Suhakam commissioners visited the Kluang Prison, a dedicated detention centre for juvenile Poca detainees, where they met 35 children, ten of whom had been arrested when they were below 18.

Fifteen of the 35 children, the commission interviewed, were Malay, 18 were Indian, and two were from other races. There was no Chinese among them.

The commission found that some of the children were still attending school when they were arrested.

During Suhakam’s visit, they observed various health and hygiene issues faced by the underage detainees, including children having diseases such as scabies.

They said most of the children there were arrested on suspicion of theft.

However, commissioner Jerald Joseph said while some of the children might have been detained under the law for their involvement in serious crimes, many were arrested just for their association with criminals and for having failed to prove their innocence.

Joseph said the children were often brought to several district police headquarters and police lock-ups before being finally brought to the Magistrate for their arrest under Poca, taking their total time under police remand to more than 60 days.

He said while the police were doing their job, there needed to be better management of criminals and suspects.

Joseph suggested the system needed to be more centralised so that an individual with multiple cases need not go on a “roadshow” from one police station to another.

“We are asking the government to first move away from the practice of detaining children under Poca and in the long-term, we are asking for the abolishment of the entire law,” he added.

Commissioner Aishah Bidin said there were special courts with the power to hear all criminal cases involving children under the Children’s Act, where due care would be given to them.

“For some reason, when they are detained under Poca, even for the same criminal offence, the treatment meted out to them is different.”

Sosma and Poca were among the draconian laws Pakatan Harapan had promised to repeal in the run-up to the last general election.

Home Minister Muhyiddin Yassin, however, recently announced that the government would keep the two security laws, but with some amendments.

“If the current laws are not maintained, there will be those who think they are free to do anything and threaten the country through gangsterism and terrorism,” Muhyiddin said.