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WE, the 19 undersigned groups, are pleased that on July 22, Tawau High Court judge Lim Hock Leng after revision acquitted documented migrant worker Sabri Umar and ordered him released from prison immediately. Sabri was released on the same day.
On April 19, Sabri was wrongly convicted for being illegally in Malaysia for an offence under Section 6(1)(c) of the Immigration Act 1959/63 by the Tawau Sessions Court, when in fact he was a documented migrant worker with a valid work permit/pass at the material time.
This was a fact evident from, among others, Sabri’s Indonesian passport, which was taken by police when he was arrested on April 5.
The court acknowledged the fact that Sabri was whipped, which was an act against Malaysian law that prohibits carrying out the sentence of whipping of the convicted until an appeal is filed, heard, and determined. This was also confirmed by the Prison Department.
The highlighting of Sabri’s miscarriage of justice, vide joint media statement by 46 groups issued on July 19 titled Sabri, Migrant Worker Wrongfully Whipped Before Appeal Heard and various letters, including from Sabri’s union, Sabah Timber Industry Employees Union (STIEU) got the high court’s attention that led to the calling up Sabri’s case for revision on July 22.
Concerns over Sabri’s possible deportation
We are worried that Sabri may be deported or sent out of Malaysia. This may be conceived as an attempt to cover up the possible wrongful actions of police, Immigration Department, Prison Department, prosecution, the employer, the courts and the government that caused an innocent man to be wrongfully charged, convicted and sentenced to 11 months imprisonment and five strokes of the whip.
Sending him out of Malaysia may impede Sabri’s quest for justice, whereby all legal actions reasonably will have to be commenced in Malaysia, and Sabri’s absence from the country may be detrimental to his enforcing his rights.
As it is, Sabri has already commenced a claim for reinstatement by reason of wrongful dismissal at the Industrial Relations Department, which is progressing and will be referred to the Industrial Court. Sabri wants to work and live legally in Malaysia, and his wife is also a migrant worker in the country.
Sabri’s claims against Malaysia for wrongful conviction and whipping
Initial investigations have shown that the Malaysian government, police, the Immigration Department, prosecutors, Prison Department and maybe even the employer may be liable for the grave injustice that has befallen Sabri.
Sabri had to spend almost 94 days in prison and 14 days in detention. He was wrongly whipped five times on June 23, despite there being an appeal that was filed on April 22 and yet to be heard.
The Prison Department, in their letter dated July 18, stated that the whipping was only carried out after they received a letter from the sessions court saying that there were no appeals from any party. This was false, as there was an appeal yet to be heard.
The Immigration Department also furnished false records about Sabri that also led to the court being misled into believing that Sabri was an undocumented migrant who had entered and remained illegally in Malaysia.
Besides the Malaysian government and its various departments, Sabri may also have a cause of action against the Indonesian government and his lawyer.
Sending migrants out of Malaysia impedes ability to maintain claims of rights violation
The speedy sending of migrants out of Malaysia, even when they have valid claims against their employer and/or others, which requires the physical presence of complainant/claimant at the law enforcement departments and/or courts, has denied many a migrant from even being able to claim their rights using the available legal avenues in Malaysia.
Calls for confirmation of whether migrant workers have existing rights/claims or ongoing cases before sending them out of Malaysia have yet to receive a positive response.
Therefore, we:
- Call on Malaysia and/or Indonesia not to cause Sabri to be sent out of Malaysia before he can exercise all his rights/claims in Malaysian avenues of justice, including his present claim for reinstatement by reason of wrongful dismissal at the Industrial Department/Court;
- Call on all parties to not threaten, deceive and/or pressure Sabri from exercising his right to claim for damages, compensation and justice from relevant parties that have unjustly deprived Sabri of his freedoms and rights, and caused him suffering; and
- Call on the government of Malaysia to ensure that Sabri can continue to work and stay legally in Malaysia until all his claims for justice are determined and satisfied. – The Vibes, July 24, 2022
This is issued by Charles Hector, Apolinar Z Tolentino, Jr and Adrian Pereira, for and on behalf of:
Aliran
Madpet (Malaysians Against Death Penalty and Torture)
Building and Wood Workers International (BWI) Asia-Pacific Region
WH4C (Workers Hub For Change)
North-South Initiative
Black Women for Wages for Housework, US
Centre for Alliance of Labour and Human Rights (Central), Cambodia
Centre for Orang Asli Concerns, Malaysia
Club Employees Union Peninsular Malaysia
Haiti Action Committee
Labour Law Reform Coalition, Malaysia
Network of Action For Migrants in Malaysia
Sabah Plantation Industry Employees Union, Malaysia
Sabah Timber Industry Employees Union
Union of Forestry Employee Sarawak
Teoh Beng Hock Trust for Democracy
The William Gomes Podcast, UK
Timber Employee Union Peninsular Malaysia
Women of Colour/Global Women’s Strike, US and UK