I was stopped from distributing memo, claims DAP MP
DAP's Bukit Mertajam MP Steven Sim claimed he was stopped from distributing copies of a memorandum from the "Women 4 Maria" group to parliamentarians in the Dewan Rakyat.
"At first I sought the help of the parliamentary staff but was told that if I don't have the permission of the clerk, I have to do it myself.
"So, I decided to spend my break time to distribute the memo to 222 MPs by leaving it on their desks."
DAP's Bukit Mertajam MP Steven Sim claimed he was stopped from distributing copies of a memorandum from the "Women 4 Maria" group to parliamentarians in the Dewan Rakyat.
"At first I sought the help of the parliamentary staff but was told that if I don't have the permission of the clerk, I have to do it myself.
"So, I decided to spend my break time to distribute the memo to 222 MPs by leaving it on their desks.
"I was stopped by another staff who said the clerk does not allow even that and asked me to meet the clerk and seek her permission," Sim recounted in a Facebook post today.
He said he texted the clerk on this matter but received no reply.
Ministers in the Prime Minister's Department, Shahidan Kassim and Nancy Shukri had received the memorandum from the group this morning, who had marched from Padang Merbok to Parliament to demand the release of Bersih chairperson Maria Chin Abdullah.
Sim appeared frustrated by the obstacles, as he only wanted to help the group distribute copies of their memorandum.
"This is a memo, not a bomb," he said.
He also pointed out that he had arrived at his desk in Parliament this morning to find an invitation to a food-tasting session by one of the MPs.
"That is allowed but a memo on a very important issue is not allowed," he said.
Malaysiakini had attempted to contact parliament secretary Rosmee Hamzah on this matter, but there had yet to be a response.
The walk this morning saw about 300 people marching to Parliament to submit the memorandum to Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak, who is currently in Peru, to protest against Maria's detention under the Special Offences (Security Measures) Act 2012 (Sosma).
The group was led by activists from various women's rights organisations including National Human Rights Society (Hakam) chairperson Ambiga Sreenevasan and Global Bersih steering committee member Ivy Josiah.
Under Sosma, Maria could be detained for up to 28 days without trial.
She was being investigated under Section 124C of the Penal Code for alleged involvement in activities detrimental to parliamentary democracy.
