Malaysia's lawmakers passed an anti-terrorism bill Tuesday after more than 10 hours of heated debate over a law that reintroduces detention without trial, three years after it was revoked.
Opposition members of parliament proposed several amendments to the legislation, under which individuals can be detained for up to two years with two-year extensions thereafter, but it was voted through unchanged in the early hours of the morning.
Malaysia last had detention without trial under the Internal Security Act (ISA), which was repealed in 2012 by Prime Minister Najib Razak under his reform agenda.
Phil Robertson of Human Rights Watch described Tuesday's move as "a giant step backwards for human rights in Malaysia."
"By restoring indefinite detention without trial, Malaysia has re-opened Pandora's Box for politically motivated, abusive state actions that many had thought was closed when the abusive Internal Security Act was revoked in 2012," he said in a statement.
The new law permits the police to arrest and detain individuals suspected of terrorist activities, with decisions for extension of detention made by a Prevention of Terrorism Board. The law skips the judiciary, disallowing the courts from having jurisdiction over decisions made by the board.
On Sunday, police continued their campaign against suspected militants, arresting 17 people aged between 14 and 44, including two who had recently returned from Syria.
Home Minister Zahid Hamidi told the nation's parliament on Monday that authorities believe the militants had been planning to target police stations and army camps to obtain firearms, the Bernama news agency reported.
"They were also planning to make bombs as detailed notes were found," it quoted him saying. "This is a real threat and preventive measures must be carried out."
Bernama said two of the suspects were soldiers, two were students, and one was a security guard.
Malaysia has been grappling with the Islamic State group and its citizens going to the Middle East to fight.
A total of 92 Malaysians have been arrested for suspected involvement in militant activities in Syria since February 2013, Khalid Abu Bakar, inspector-general of police, said Tuesday in a statement.
Under the new act, a person can initially be remanded for investigative detention for as long as 60 days and is not required to be told the reason for their arrest, Malaysian Bar President Steven Thiru said Sunday in a statement. There is no guarantee legal representation will be permitted, Thiru said.
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