The Malaysian Human Rights Commission (Suhakam) today denounced the government's ban on general assemblies as a violation of human rights.

Suhakam said in a press statement that the right to assemble peacefully is a fundamental human right guaranteed by the Malaysian Constitution.

"There is no legal provision for the blanket ban imposed on political ceramah (public talks). As such, Suhakam will seek clarification from the police on this matter," it said.

The human rights body also urged the government to reconsider recommendations made in its Freedom of Assembly Report.

In the report, Suhakam said the government should respond to the changing political climate and allow peaceful assemblies as they are a healthy way for people to express dissatisfaction over matters that affect their lives.

Amend Police Act

It recommended that amendments be made to the Police Act to require only notification to the police rather than an application for a permit to hold assemblies.

"If [Suhakam's] recommendations were implemented, the current problems arising from public ceramah could have been averted," added Suhakam.

Police have been disrupting opposition ceramah recently acting on the usual "no police permit" reason, further fuelling the wrath of opposition supporters.

Allegations of PAS supporters setting a police truck on fire and being unruly during the gatherings have seen 31 of them arrested so far.

This is not the first such ban in recent memory. Last July, the authorities found that these functions were "instilling hatred towards the government" and imposed a blanket ban on them. Police enforcement of the ban generated a similar resentment from opposition supporters then, too.

Meanwhile, Suhakam chairperson Musa Hitam opened a branch office in Kuching, Sarawak, this afternoon.

Representing the Sarawak government at the ceremony was deputy state secretary Wilson Baya Dandot.