'Appalling': Lawyers slam arrest of pro-Palestine protesters

Rights group Lawyers for Liberty (LFL) has condemned the arrest of a group of people who gathered outside the US embassy in Kuala Lumpur today to protest against US complicity in the ongoing deadly Israeli bombardment of Lebanon and Gaza.

"Throughout the world, right-thinking people are protesting against the genocide in Palestine.

"It is appalling that in Malaysia protesters are being unlawfully detained for standing up against mass murder," said LFL director Zaid Malek.

He also rejected the police's excuse that the group was taking part in an "illegal gathering", adding that the phrase does not appear in the Peaceful Assembly Act.

"The concept of an'illegal assembly' in our law was removed after amendments to the Police Act. Are the police and government not aware of this?" he asked.

Police today arrested seven protesters who gathered for about an hour near the US Embassy to protest Washington's support towards Israel in the wake of hundreds of civilian casualties in Lebanon.

It is not the first time that Malaysian police have arrested pro-Palestinian demonstrators, an action seen as going against Malaysia's decades-long policy to support the Palestinian cause.

In June, police arrested three activists who had protested during a gathering to mark American Independence Day.

Earlier in February, PSM activist Harmit Singh was arrested for trying to hand over a memorandum to the US embassy.

Zaid said a public assembly could not be declared "illegal" as it was right guaranteed under Article 10(1)(b) of the constitution.

"This means that the arrests made by the police on those seven individuals has no legal basis and is unconstitutional. We call upon the police to release them unconditionally effective immediately," he said.

He added that the Peaceful Assembly Act also does not give police any power to arrest protesters using the excuse of "illegal gathering".