214 People Have Died in Malaysia’s Detention Within First Six Months of 2020

By Karissa Lund  •  07 Aug 2020 in News

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According to The Star, Malaysia’s Home Ministry announced that 214 people have died in lock-ups, prisons and immigration depots in the first six months of this year alone.

Recently, Kasthuri Patto (PH-Batu Kawan) asked about the number of custody deaths, including those held by the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC).

The ministry said in a written reply that between January to June, prisons recorded 188 deaths, out of which 158 were Malaysians and the rest were foreigners. It added that out of the 158, there were 109 Malays, 25 Indians, 20 Chinese and four of other ethnicities.

“The measures taken by the Prison Department include checks, psychology tests, close monitoring and health facilities,” it added.

During the same period, 23 deaths took place at immigration depots. This included areas from Semenyih, Langkap, Lenggeng, Pekan Nenas, Juru, KLIA, Bukit Jalil, Ajil and Machap Umboo.

Besides that, three people have died in police lock-ups. The deaths involved a Malay man in Kelantan, a Chinese man in Sarawak and a Nepalese in Kuala Lumpur.

“The police have taken measures to avoid deaths in lock-ups with tighter standard operating procedure (SOP) to handle sick detainees, making frequent rounds outside the lock-up cells at night, preparing a treatment room with medical assistants and putting additional staff to manage detainees,” said the ministry.

As for MACC lock-ups, there has been no deaths recorded this year.

As a stepping stone, the ministry added that the renting of closed-circuit television (CCTV) camera systems which were approved during the tabling of Budget 2020, is in the tender process which includes 684 lock-up locations nationwide.

“The police have also applied for an allocation of RM35mil for body cameras and are waiting for approval,” it added.

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