If allegations of excessive use of force by the police, in particular the Federal Reserve Unit (FRU), during the July 9 rally hold water, hundreds of protesters would have sought medical treatment, says a retired FRU commander.

Going by the allegations, the protesters would have either been hospitalised, or the least, given out-patient treatment, noted Sulaiman Menga Din.

NONEFRU personnel, he said, are trained to use minimal force in dispersing demonstrators as the law provides, as well as observe standard operating procedures.

He said all police personnel are strictly required to obey the orders, which are minuted, including on the firing of tear gas.

"Each time, FRU men are required to be on the ground, they undergo briefing based on the information received on the expected crowd, the issues involved, and whether they are armed, and other relevent information," Sulaiman told Bernama today.

He said during the July 9 'illegal rally', officers involved in the operation were told to not only prevent crowds from gathering in the city centre but also thwart possible clashes among rival groups of demonstrators.

"You must understand that nowadays, almost every single action or movement is recorded and within minutes, it is uploaded on the websites and viewers can follow, even unfolding almost 'live'.

NONE"Here's the problem for the police... viewers are not cautioned or trained to filter information fed to them or what the actual incidents were... at the scene," said Sulaiman.

He said problems arise when only selected or isolated incidents are highlighted and the police are not given the opportunity to defend themselves.

Sulaiman, who was FRU commander from 1996-99, said people fail to understand procedures adopted by the Malaysian riot police, compared with those in other countries.

"Almost every day, there are news channels highlighting how demonstrators are mistreated, and the excessive use of force by riot police, even in so-called countries championing human rights," he said.

Based on his experience in 1998,Sulaiman said, it had been a difficult task to round up some 1,600 demonstrators and screen them before releasing them by 9pm.

Anwar 'allowed to seek treatment'

He said not even 10 people had turned up the next morning at police stations to lodge reports that they had really been mistreated.

NONE"But people just talk about injuries sustained among demonstrators. What about our men who were injured during demonstrations in 1998, where catapults and stones were used against them?" he asked.

Sulaiman noted that even when Opposition Leader Anwar Ibrahim and his bodyguard claimed they were hit by tear gas canisters during the Bersih 2.0 event, they had been allowed to seek treatment at a private medical centre of their choice and the police had not stopped or threatened to arrest them.

He stressed that each policeman is trained to respect an individual's rights and to only step in if the law has been violated.

"What we saw on July 9 was that the demonstrators had violated and shown disrespect for the law, and our men in blue were just carrying out their duties as required... as simple as that," he said.

On the recruitment of FRU personnel, Sulaiman said those with the right qualities, especially "cool-headed" ones, and those well-versed with the law, are given priority.

Sulaiman said post-mortem sessions were also regularly conducted to identify weaknesses or any wrongdoing by officers or personnel during operations.

"In the past, action was taken against our men, including dismissing them from the unit (FRU)," he said.

- Bernama

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