AN arrest deprives a person of his personal liberty, which is a fundamental right provided under article 5 of the Federal Constitution.

As such, arrests must be done in accordance with the law.

In the case of Saul Hamid Bin Pakir Mohamad v Inspector Abdul Fatah Bin Abdul Rahman & Anor (1999) High Court judge Zaleha Zahari said: “The legal position (is) as follows: The power of the police to arrest is governed by written law and is as prescribed by section 23(1) of the Criminal Procedure Code.”

Section 23(1)(a) allows the police to arrest without warrant any person who has been concerned with any offence committed anywhere in Malaysia, but the offence must be a seizable offence under the law.

There must either be a reasonable complaint against the person or credible information has been received or a reasonable suspicion exists of his being concerned with the seizable offence.

Opposition leader Hamzah Zainudin said the authorities should have arrested members of British band The 1975 for its disrespectful actions on stage at the Good Vibes Festival.

But as of noon Saturday, Selangor police chief Hussein Omar Khan told Free Malaysia Today that no police reports had been lodged and that the police would be asking the festival organisers to provide more details about a controversial incident involving the performance by the band. 

A day later Hussein told The Star the band had left Malaysia on Saturday morning.

So, how can the the band members be arrested in accordance with the law when there is a lack of reasonable complaint, credible information or reasonable suspicion? – July 25, 2023.

* Hafiz Hassan reads The Malaysian Insight.