Rampas kamera dan rakaman wartawan bukan SOP, Hishammuddin dah blur kot...

Ketua Polis Negara Tan Sri Ismail Omar hari ini menjelaskan bahawa tindakan polis merampas kamera dan rakaman wartawan yang membuat liputan perhimpunan BERSIH 3.0 Sabtu lalu bukan sebahagian daripada garis panduan operasi polis (SOP).


Beliau berkata demkian ketika mengulas kenyataan Menteri Dalam Negeri Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Hussein semalam yang menyatakan sebaliknya.

"Saya tak tahu. Saya nak terangkan, kita tidak ada SOP sedemikian. Kita bertindak berdasarkan undang-undang dan saya ingin katakan bahawa polis bertindak secara profesional dalam tangani masalah yang berlaku.

"Saya ingat saya kata beginilah. Kita tidak ada arahan khusus atau khas tentang rampas kamera. Kalau kamera itu ada senjata, lainlah," katanya pada sidang media petang tadi.

Ditanya siapakah yang memberikan arahan untuk mengambil barangan milik wartawan seperti kamera dan kad memori, Ismail sekadar berkata, pihak polis hanya mengikut undang-undang. 

Ismail juga berkata, wartawan perlu dilindungi dalam perhimpunan seperti itu dan pihaknya turut mengambil berat tentang aduan yang telah diberi oleh orang awam, wartawan malah anggota polisnya sendiri.

Katanya, polis bersikap terbuka untuk menyiasat segala tohmahan yang diberikan. Malah, beliau menggesa agar mana-mana pihak yang didakwa dikasari, membuat aduan.

"Tiada siapa yang beri arahan. Seperti yang saya kata, semua ikut kuasa undang-undang. 


Kejadian telah berlaku dan kita akan siasat secara terbuka untuk jaga kepentingan semua orang.

"Kita akan siasat semua laporan polis yang dibuat. Kita akan siasat dengan adil. Keadilan untuk semua. Malah ada juga pegawai polis yang dikasari.

"Ada yang patah gigi, hidung, lengan retak dan kenderaan pasukan telah dimusnahkan. Kita akan siasat," katanya lagi.

Beliau turut ditanya mengenai arahan kepada anggota polis untuk membuat tangkapan di luar kawasan Dataran Merdeka memandangkan pasukan itu hanya diperintahkan untuk berkawal agar peserta tidak memasuki kawasan tersebut.

Ismail menjelaskan, anggotanya bertindak secara proaktif bagi mencegah sebarang kemungkinan yang tidak diingini berlaku.

"Kita bertindak secara proaktif. Takkan nak tunggu rumah terbakar baru nak padam api. Ini adalah tindakan untuk mencegah," katanya lagi.

IGP: Seizing reporters' cameras not police SOP

Inspector-General of Police Ismail Omar has clarified that confiscating memory cards and cameras belonging to journalists is not part of the police standard operating procedure (SOP).

This contradicts Home Minister Hishammuddin Hussein’s claim that the seizure of journalists’ equipment while covering Saturday’s Bersih 3.0 rally was part of police SOP.


"There is no such thing. We act in accordance with the law," Ismail replied curtly when pressed on the matter at a press conference at the police headquarters at Bukit Aman.

Yesterday, Home Minister Hishammuddin Hussein said that the camera and memory cards belonging to journalists were seized as part of the SOP.

Hishammuddin was cornered on the harsh action by the police on journalists covering the rally and whether it was to "black out" claims of police brutality at the scene.

Although he urged the people not to speculate on the severity of the claims, Hishammuddin commended the police for controlling the situation.

Among the journalists who were roughed up was Radzi Razak, from TheSun, who claimed that he was beaten up by seven or eight police officers, despite displaying his media card.

Chen Shaua Fui, assistant editor of news site Merdeka Review, said four policemen tried to snatch her camera and when she showed her press card, it was thrown aside and she was threatened with arrest if she continued taking pictures.


Camera memory cards seized

Malaysiakini's photojournalist Koh Jun Lin was temporarily detained after taking photographs of police beating up protesters. Koh's camera and memory card were also seized but his camera was returned upon his release.

Arif Kartono, a photographer with The Malay Mail, reported that he was assaulted by six uniformed police personnel and his camera was smashed. His colleague, Ashraf Shamsul Azlan, was also threatened and had his camera memory card seized.

Makkal Osai photographer P. Malayandy also had his camera confiscated and said he was assaulted when he tried photographing police beating up protesters.

Al-Jazeera correspondent Harry Fawcett had said he and the international news network’s cameraperson were shoved, causing their video camera to fall and be smashed, while Channel News Asia videographer Kenny Lew was allegedly punched by police and had his tripod seized.

Huang An Jian, a photographer with Chinese newspaper Guang Ming Daily, was arrested while taking photographs of protesters being arrested and The Malaysian Insider's Lisa J. Ariffin took a hit from a tear gas canister launched at the crowd.

Contrastingly, however, was the statement by Al Hijrah videographer Mohd Azri Mohd Salleh, who said he was by protesters when he tried to protect a policeman.


source:malaysiakini

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