Let us call a spade a spade. In giving silent or verbal consent to the government to use the ISA on its political rivals, Malaysians place an instrument in the hands of the government, which has no checks or balances. A political rival can simply be branded a threat to national security and be shut away.

Who decides he or she is a security threat? Not the courts since ISA prescribes and legalises a detention without trial.

Who then decides? Only one Malaysian makes the decision. If he says a certain individual is a security threat then he or she is indeed a security threat. No one in all the ruling parties may openly disagree with this decision. In this way, there is no checks and balances in the ruling parties nor in the government.

Thus, one Malaysian has full liberty to deal with his political rivals in this manner. Which Malaysian is surprised that in this recent spate of ISA detentions, only Keadilan and PAS leaders are affected and not one from the ruling parties?

We Malaysians must stand up to this one Malaysian and say to him clearly and unequivocally: Only cowards use the ISA.

The ISA is a barbaric, uncivilised, cowardly act by any standard or measure, culture or religion.

If you have no decency or guts to match your political rivals in the political arena, do not think that peace-loving Malaysians will ever agree to your cowardice and approve your coarse action in simply jailing your opponents. Stand up and fight like a man or leave. You cannot fool all of the people all the time. A coward is a coward is a coward.

As for all those Malaysians who applaud and consent to all these ISA detentions, how short is your memory? When did these ISA detainees go over to Afghanistan for training? Have you so easily forgotten that it was at the time of the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan, when our beloved government allowed the setting up of an Afghanistan mission in Kuala Lumpur which encouraged young Malaysians to go over to help them recover their nation?

Would the government care to publish a full list of those who went? Are they only PAS people?

And if you have proof that these people are suddenly a threat to national security in 2001, prove it. Let the public know the truth. In what way are these people now a security threat to the nation?

The use of the ISA on political rivals of the government is a stigma on the good name of the country and brings only shame to us. Loyal Malaysians must stand against these dastardly acts against our fellow Malaysians and recover the good name of our beloved country.

Say no to cowards.