After drawn-out negotiations, police today gave permission for three lawmakers to visit Sungai Siput MP Dr Michael Jeyakumar, now held under the Emergency Ordinance (EO) in Kuala Lumpur.
According to Penang Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng, the inspector-general of police Ismail Omar has allowed only three parliamentarians to visit Jeyakumar at 11am, today.
They are DAP's Ipoh Timor MP Lim Kit Siang, Salahuddin Ayub of PAS and PKR's Subang parliamentarian R Sivarasa, said Guan Eng in a statement.
According to Guan Eng, the IGP had responded to his July 12 letter requesting the visit, by saying Jeyakumar had already been discharged from the National Heart Institute (IJN) at 2.30pm yesterday.
Nine members of parliament and a senator went to the insitute yesterday to visit Jeyakumar, but were turned away by police officers guarding his room.
They were told prior permission had to be obtained from the federal police headquarters at Bukit Aman in Kuala Lumpur before being allowed to see the detainee.
Jeyakumar was one of 30 PSM activists arrested on June 25 for allegedly 'waging war against the Agong' when materials purportedly promoting communism were found with them while on a roadshow.
From being investigated under 122 of the Penal Code, however, Jeyakumar and five others were re-arrested soon after being released from remand.
It was made known subsequently that the 'PSM 6', as they have come to be known, were being detained under Section 3(1) of the EO for threatening the 'public order'.
The EO is similar to the Internal Security Act, which allows police to detain suspects for up to 60 days.
PSM has described the accusations against PSM and its activists as “false allegations” and a reflection of the authorities' “ill will” against the party.
The party also said the attacks are “attempts to mislead the people of Malaysia with ridiculous stories and fantasies”.