Mindless arrests

Most of the picked up young men are from poor families. Their parents and relatives have thronged the police stations and courts in the last few days to get them released. This has spawned a degree of corruption, let alone causing unbearable hardship to the ordinary people.

There is a High Court ruling that the law enforcers should be judicious in the application of Section 54, meaning that they should much rather err on the side of caution. That amply reflects judicial concern over the use of Section 54. Then it has been ruled that the law enforcers should produce the arrestees before court within 24 hours and make sure that their parents and relatives have been informed of the arrest as soon as possible, but not later than within the same time period.

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It has been reported that nearly 40 percent of the thousands of arrestees have been released. That highlights the arbitrary nature of the operation.

There is no doubt that such a crackdown amounts to a gross violation of human rights. It is an ill-advised counter offensive in the face of the opposition movement that can only bring bad name to the government. We are hoping the government will see fit to stop the mass arrest campaign.