October 27 marks the 30th anniversary of  Operasi Lalang, where 106 people were detained without trial and the publishing licences of three newspapers were revoked. The episode remains a grim reminder of what can happen in the absence of check and balances, a deep scar in the Malaysian psyche. To mark this day, The Malaysian Insight speaks to those involved in the dragnet – the victims and their families, detention centre wardens and police.

CONTROVERSIAL Malay rights activist Ibrahim Ali does not have nightmares about Ops Lalang. Nor does he look back with anger at his detention without trial under the Internal Security Act.

Instead, he said the detention taught him the need for a powerful security law to safeguard national security and keep the peace in Malaysia.

“I got a clear picture of the need to safeguard national security while I was under detention, when the police explained the situation to me,” he told The Malaysian Insight.

In today’s context, Ibrahim says the ISA would have stopped large numbers of people, specifically the Chinese, from gathering in the Bersih street demonstrations.

“If the ISA was still in existence, how would the Chinese be brave enough to be involved in such large numbers in demonstrations as we see now, including the Bersih gatherings,” he said.

Ibrahim was among the 106 people detained under Ops Lalang in 1987. 

He was detained for 58 days under Operasi Lalang and two years later, for 60 days following a student demonstration. 

The president of Malay-rights group Perkasa said he objected to the abolishment of ISA when Prime Minister Najib Razak proposed it in Parliament in 2011.

“From all the people who spoke out, I was the only member of parliament who opposed the proposal,” said Ibrahim.

He suggested that the ISA be reviewed to reduce the detention period from 60 days to 30 to allow police to conduct investigations. Family members should also be allowed to visit during the detention period.

“I’m the most qualified to speak on this issue because I was arrested twice under the ISA,” said the former MP of Pasir Mas in Kelantan.

On September 15, 2011, Najib announced the abolishment of the ISA.

ISA ‘a necessity’

When Ibrahim was detained under the ISA during Ops Lalang, he was part of a group of Umno Youth members who had taken part in an incendiary protest at stadium TPCA in Kg Baru, Kuala Lumpur. The rhetoric at the gathering carried strong racial overtones.

He said he later came to understand that his arrest was necessary as police believed that he had the potential to spark chaos, based on his earlier behaviour and activities.

Ibrahim acknowledged that he has long been labelled a racist, but blames the media for playing up the issue.

“I’m anti-Chinese, racist… these are all the result of sensational reporting by news portals.”

The author of a biography titled The Misunderstood Man said he has always championed the rights of the Malays, and in doing so has gone against many leaders, including Najib.

“When I set up Perkasa, the racist label was slapped on me by sensational news reports,” said Ibrahim. – October 24, 2017.