Hanipa meets with Sosma detainees.
A total of 118 detainees held under the Security Offences (Special Measures) Act (Sosma) 2012 at the Sungai Buloh Prison have agreed to end their hunger strike.
Deputy Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Mohamed Hanipa Maidin said an agreement was reached after he had a two-hour meeting with representatives of the detainees.
“They (detainees) agreed to end the hunger strike and have started to eat and drink. Their health is also good,” he told reporters at the Sungai Buloh Prison on Sunday (Aug 26).
Earlier, he met with the detainees’ family members who had gathered in front of the prison since 11am after the detainees began a hunger strike on Saturday to urge the Government to abolish Sosma.
Mohamed Hanipa also asked the crowd there to disperse.
“There is nothing they need to worry about because the detainees have stopped their hunger strike. The prison will look after them well,” he said.
On Saturday, Attorney-General Tommy Thomas was reported to have said that Sosma would be abolished as promised by the Pakatan Harapan government.
“Putrajaya has got the message, the attorney-general has already made a statement on this, you just need to be patient,” Hanipa said, referring to Thomas’ assurance that Sosma would be abolished despite resistance from certain quarters within the government and the legal fraternity.
The Sepang MP also said that as a lawyer, he could not accept the law, which he described as cruel.
“I have no problem if it is abolished.”
In July, Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad said the government would abolish Sosma, which is widely seen as a replacement of the Internal Security Act (ISA), which has been repealed.
The previous Barisan Nasional government had defended this law, saying it was needed to deter extremists, including those linked to the Islamic State.
Under Sosma, a person can be detained for up to 28 days and police can delay his access to family and legal counsel for up to 48 hours after being detained.
Among those who were detained under the law were 1MDB critics Khairuddin Abu Hassan and his lawyer Matthias Chang, as well as former Bersih 2.0 chairman Maria Chin Abdullah.