A Malaysian minister has said that a dozen terrorist attacks on landmarks including the iconic Petronas Twin Towers have been foiled since 1999.
Nazri Abdul Aziz, minister in charge of legal affairs, was quoted by the New Straits Times as saying that regional outfit Jemaah Islamiyah (JI) targeted Kuala Lumpur International Airport, police headquarters and fast food outlets. And in 2000, authorities learned of a plan by militant group Kumpulan Militan Malaysia (KMM) to attack a US warship docked at a Malaysian port, he told parliament in comments confirmed by his office Wednesday. Nazri’s addressed parliament as it passed a new security law Tuesday to replace the controversial Internal Security Act (ISA) which allowed indefinite detention without trial.
JI, which draws inspiration from Al-Qaeda, has carried out dozens of bombings in Indonesia in the past decade including the 2002 attacks in Bali that left more than 200 dead, mostly foreign tourists. Nazri said that in 2008, two JI members from Indonesia, who entered Malaysia with fake passports, targeted the upmarket shopping centre underneath the Twin Towers but were arrested, deported and jailed in Indonesia. “The militant group had done surveillance on their targets, but the authorities managed to stop such attacks from taking place following arrests made under the Internal Security Act,” he was quoted as saying. Parliament’s lower house passed the Security Offences (Special Measures) Act to replace the colonial-era ISA which has been slammed by rights group who say the government has used it as a tool against political opponents.
The new act stipulates that suspects must be released or brought to court after 28 days in custody, and that people cannot be detained for their political beliefs. Malaysian right groups Suaram and Movement to Abolish the ISA called Wednesday for the new law to be withdrawn, saying it still gives police broad detention powers and “fails to uphold international human rights standards”. Prime Minister Najib Razak, who is expected to call national elections soon, has launched a slew of reforms aimed at easing restrictions on civil liberties, including media freedom and the right to assemble.
