Sixteen alleged Kumpulan Mujahidin Malaysia (KMM) members detained without trial for two years are threatening to go on hunger strike on Monday, the Abolish ISA Movement (GMI) said today.

The move is in protest against the Home Ministry's decision to extend their detention despite being on good behaviour and recommended for release by the ministry's appeals' board, said GMI working committee chairperson Syed Ibrahim Syed Nor.

GMI leaders and wives of the detainees met with Human Rights Commission of Malaysia (Suhakam) officials today over the extended detention of the alleged Kumpulan Mujahiddin Malaysia members at Kamunting.

They were detained without trial under the Internal Security Act (ISA) two years ago and their detention order was recently extended by two years.

GMI had written to Suhakam on Feb 17 appealing against the extension and the detainees had on Jan 5 wrote to the ministry appealing the same.

At the meeting today, Syed Ibrahim presented letters of appeal and protest to Suhakam secretary Kamaruddin Mohamed Baria (see photo).

Only an advisory body

It is learnt that at the meeting today, Kamaruddin explained that Suhakam is just an advisory board and that all he could do is to write to the committee recommending that an appeal for the release be forwarded to the Home Ministry.

He told the group that he would seek the consent of Suhakam commissioners to refer the case. The approval must be from a two-third majority which translates to eight out of the total 12 commissioners.

He also assured those present that he would treat the case as an urgent one.

Detainee wife and mother of six Masitah Baharom told Kamaruddin that she is not working and the family is surviving on the donation for his 18-year-old son who recently became mentally ill after being stressed out by his father's detention.

"It's not that I didn't look for a job but this problem has stressed me both physically and mentally so much so that I can't work," she said, adding that her daughter is also ill and in need of money for treatment.

Masitah said her financial woes had also forced her to shift to a smaller house and she invited Kamaruddin to visit her at home to view the appalling condition.

In a letter to the Suhakam commissioners, the 16 said they will not only refuse food from the camp but also from their family members. They will also stop drinking water.

They also requested that Suhakam commissioners visit the camp to evaluate them so that fair treatment can be meted out to them.

Appeal to PM

In a related story, AFP quoted Suaram spokeperson Yap Swee Seng as saying that the 16 had written to Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, who is also the home minister, to press for their release.

Yap expressed disappointment over the government's decision last Saturday to extend the detention orders of six other ISA detainees for another two years on grounds that they posed a threat to national security.

Those six, and another seven whose two-year terms end Friday, are allegedly linked to the Jemaah Islamiah (JI) regional terror network blamed for the Bali bombing which killed 202 people in October 2002.

A total of more than 80 alleged Islamic militants are held under the ISA. Rights groups have urged the government to scrap the legislation but it maintains that detention without trial is needed as a first line of defence against terrorism.