PUTRAJAYA must take seriously the concerns of DAP secretary-general Lim Guan Eng about the arrests of two of its assemblymen and party members for alleged links to the now defunct Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) terror group, Anwar Ibrahim said.

The PKR president today reiterated his opposition to the government’s use of the Security Offences (Special Measures) Act 2012 (Sosma) on 12 men arrested and charged, saying the law, which allows 28 days of detention without trial, went against Pakatan Harapan’s position on draconian laws.

“The concerns expressed by Guan Eng should be given attention by the Pakatan Harapan leadership and by the government.

“On the use of Sosma, I have already stated PKR’s stand and our party has asked that police release a complete list of organisations considered terrorist groups,” Anwar said after the PKR Federal Territories convention in Kuala Lumpur today.

Anwar, who is also Port Dickson MP, was asked to comment on Lim’s statement last night that the DAP leadership was “deeply unhappy” over the arrests and charging of its members and state leaders in relation to the LTTE.

The two DAP reps charged are Gadek assemblyman and Malacca exco G. Saminathan and Seremban Jaya assemblymen P. Gunasekaran.

Lim had questioned the arrests, which he said were without basis, and also why other politicians who are now with the opposition and who had shown support for the LTTE as well as communists while they were in government had not been arrested.

Lim had not mentioned any names, but in 2017, then Umno secretary-general Tengku Adnan Tengku Mansor and MCA president at the time, Liow Tiong Lai, had attended the congress of the Communist Party of China, while MCA leaders have also attended training sessions at the communist party’s academy.

Home Minister Muhyiddin Yassin earlier today said DAP should not be tarnished because of the alleged actions of some of its members.

The 12 arrested were charged on October 29 and 31 with multiple offences related to the LTTE, which once waged a civil war to carve out a homeland for Tamils in largely Buddhist Sinhalese Sri Lanka.

The LTTE was militarily defeated in 2009 and is now considered defunct.

The charges against the 12 are under 130JB(1)(a) of the Penal Code, which deals with alleged support for a terrorist group and possessing items linked to the group.

The men face a maximum of 30 years’ jail or life imprisonment if convicted. – November 2, 2019.