Eight former Internal Security Act (ISA) detainees have filed a suit against the government, Home Affairs minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi and ex-Inspector General of Police Norian Mai for unspecified damages over their detention.

The civil suit was filed with the Kuala Lumpur High Court by their lawyers yesterday.

The former detainees named the trio as being responsible for their 'unlawful detention' for 60 days under Section 73 and a further two years under Section 8 of the security law for five of them.

The suit also named Norian in his personal capacity for defamation over a statement he made to the media in April 2001, where he alleged that those arrested between April 10 and 11 that year were terrorists seeking to overthrow the government by violent means.

Among those who filed the suit were Parti Keadilan Rakyat (Keadilan) vice-president Tian Chua, Youth chief Mohd Ezam Mohd Nor, supreme council members Dr Badrulamin Bahron and Saari Sungib as well as malaysiakini columnist Hishamuddin Rais.

The five were held under the ISA for two years at the Kamunting Detention Camp in Taiping, Perak and were released last June.

Other plaintiffs include activist Badaruddin Ismail, and Keadilan Youth leaders Abdul Ghani Haroon and N Gobalakrishnan - who were held under Section 73 between 41 and 51 days.

First time

At a press conference today, their lawyer R Sivarasa said the suit was filed to prove that the claims made by the government to justify their detention were based on 'lies' and that the detention was politically motivated.

"Given that they have been denied their right to trial all along, we are (filing this lawsuit) so that as witnesses, they can take to the stand and make their position in court," he added.

According to the lawyer, this is the first time that former ISA detainees have sued the government over "scurrilous claims" made publicly and through the media.

In addition, he said Norian was being sued in his personal capacity because the allegations were made by him and subsequently published in the New Straits Times, The Sun, Berita Harian, Utusan Malaysia and Harian Metro.

Via a press statement, Norian had declared then that preventive detention was needed because the detainees had planned to topple the government using militants means and were in the process of procuring weapons such as explosives and grenade launchers.

Meanwhile, Sivarasa said there was an opportunity to push the case for an early hearing on the grounds that it is an issue of public interest.

Tian Chua, who was also present, said the former detainees want to challenge the government on two counts - its justification of invoking the ISA on security grounds and its propensity to manipulate the media to achieve political gains over the arrests.