October 1987 has embedded an indelible memory chip in Malaysian history. What began on Monday, Oct 26, and spread over a week is infamously known as Operasi Lalang (literally 'weeding operation'), spearheaded by former Inspector-General of Police Hanif Omar.

The initial swoop was discreet and swift, but exploded into a full-scale crackdown by the third day when then premier Dr Mahathir Mohamad acknowledged in Parliament - via a televised speech - that the detentions were necessary to maintain communal harmony.

It shocked the nation and sent ripples of concern around Commonwealth countries, from the UK to Australia. The events were fast moving, as fear hung like a stubborn haze over Malaysians and acute anxiety dogged families of detainees.

The late 'Mr Opposition' Tan Chee Koon in his simple narration entitled, 'The Crackdown" described the political atmosphere.

"It was in this air of uncertainty, fear of impending gloom and a holocaust that the police struck in the early hours(...)The detentions went on right up to well past the end of the week.

"The first to be detained was Miss Chee Heng Leng, a Wellesley graduate who is a lecturer at the University Pertanian Malaysia. There was a knock at the door at 0100 hours and she was taken in for interrogation.

"Before the morning was over, Lim Guan Eng, the son of Lim Kit Siang, the leader of the Opposition and a MP himself was taken in and by the end of the day, 19 other Malaysians had been pulled in including Dr Chandra Muzaffar, Lim Kit Siang (and) Karpal Singh."

The Aliran president was quietly picked up by plainclothes men at his Gelugor home at 6.45pm. Another consumer association top official was picked up at her office in Penang the same evening. Many others were found at locations like hotels, offices, residences while a few were detained at police stations.

Arrested under Section 71(1) of the Internal Security Act 1960 (ISA) were religious teachers, educationists, hawkers, rank-and-file political leaders from both the Barisan Nasional and the opposition parties, vegetable sellers, insurance officers, loggers, traders, rubber tappers, lawyers, engineers and academicians.

Michael Cheng, deputy secretary of the Think Tank Centre, a Forum-Asia member and a NGO in Singapore, later said: "The fateful knock came in the middle of the night, brining to me into a life without light. They took me away from my family. They threw away my rights and my dignity."

According to news reports on Oct 29, a total of 63 people had been detained and by the time the crackdown was completed, more than 106 had become victim of the ISA. A breakdown of the first 97 to be detained reveals they were from political parties (37) and social movements (23), while 37 more were individuals (Saravanamuttu, 1989:239).

Condemning the arrests as worthy of a dictatorship (The Times, Oct 30, 1987), first prime minister Tunku Abdul Rahman did not mince his words: "This is the most undemocratic and I deplore the attitude of the prime minister. It portends ill for the future."

'Convenient tool'

It has taken years of critical evaluation and often debatable interpretations by academicians, politicians, NGOs and civic-minded Malaysians to examine the causes of, and justifications for, the crackdown.

The bitter lesson drawn from the crux of Operasi Lalang is of the "executive stranglehold on politics by furthering restricting fundamental liberties" (Wikipedia).

By far the most important central issue cited - to prevent racial riots - is no longer relevant today, which leads to questions about the ISA.

Reginald Hugh Hickling, the British lawyer who drafted the ISA, wrote in 1989: "I could not imagine then that the time would come when the power of detention () would be used against political opponents, welfare workers and others dedicated to nonviolent, peaceful activities." (Susan Loone Blog)

The ISA has been abused or can in future be further abused as a tool against critics and political opponents instead of serving its aims against communists in the past or terrorists now. During the 1960s and 1970s, the government suppressed political activity and detained some 3,000 individuals between 1960 and 1981.

In 2005, opposition politician Dr Kua Kia Soong (photo) said: "The ISA has been kept in use all this time mainly because it is very convenient tool at the disposal of the ruling coalition.

"It has served as an instrument of terror of the state and used consistently against dissidents who have defended the democratic and human rights of the Malaysian people."

Tan posed a pertinent question: "The ISA was enacted in 1960 to contain communism and subversion but why it is used for another purpose? The people of this country must think seriously on the purpose of the ISA and I do hope that our constitutional lawyers will study the present round of detentions (Operasi Lalang) and challenge the detention in the courts.

"This round of arrests show how wide ranging the ISA is and how it can and has been misused by the government."

Indeed, the ISA is a prime example of another unjust law that should not have any place in a democracy. Detainees are denied access to lawyers, family visits and independent medical care. They are also at grave risk of police brutality and abusive interrogation methods.

The torture of detainees has been well documented. Many accounts have touched on confinement to a solitary cell with a small opening to allow for light and ventilation. A wooden plank serves for a bed. The detainee is not allowed a blanket, must wear prison clothes, and is not allowed a tooth brush, tooth paste or face towel. Harsh treatment is meted out, including endless hours of interrogation and denial of sleep to break their spirit.

Cheng remarked: "Incredibly, there are some who do not realise, or choose to disregard, the fact that (the ISA is) unconstitutional. As members of the United Nations, states have an inherent obligation to respect and observe all UN Conventions.

"Thailand and the Philippines, for instance, have even ratified the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. They are clearly going against the grain of internationally accepted behaviour. In showing no regard for the conventions signed, the governments have also brought down their standing in the international community." (Blog Susan Loone: Forum-Asia)

STANLEY KOH works for a Malaysian think-tank.