Beri tempoh masa untuk bentangkan pindaan Sosma, kata Ramkarpal

DAP Parliamentarian Ramkarpal Singh has urged the government to explain when the proposed amendments to the Security and Terrorism Enactment (STEP 2012) will be introduced in Parliament, as they have reportedly been delayed for too long. The Deputy Speaker of DAP, who chairs the DAP Law Committee, stated that although the ministry had previously announced the potential introduction of STEP amendments in the Dewan Rakyat, no further developments have occurred since that announcement.

Singh called on the government to announce the timeline for the STEP amendment introduction, as the matter requires urgent attention.

Earlier, on July 9, Saifuddin Nasution Ismail, the then Deputy Prime Minister and Home Minister, mentioned that STEP amendments were being considered to strike a balance between national security, fairness, and the protection of human rights before being presented to the Cabinet and subsequently the Dewan Rakyat. Ramkarpal also commented on former Deputy Prime Minister Ayob Khan Mydin Pitchay's stance supporting STEP, noting that the special legislation was necessary to effectively handle extremist crimes and planned terrorism.

He argued that regular criminal procedures were insufficient for addressing large-scale extremist operations and multiple suspects.

However, Ramkarpal believes STEP has problems as it does not provide judicial oversight for suspects detained for up to 28 days. He also criticized the use of bail provisions in STEP as excessively harsh and unjust (draconian). Currently, STEP stipulates that most offenses under the act cannot be punished with bail, except in certain circumstances such as involving women, minors, or individuals with illnesses.

Ramkarpal also claims that STEP has been applied to ordinary citizens and individuals linked to shadowy group activities, providing examples like a 16-year-old female teenager from Kedah who was detained, which he believes suggests possible misuse of the law.