CHAPTER 1
III. COMPLAINTS AND MONITORING DIVISION
In 2016, the Commission received a total of 879 complaints, monitored four
public assemblies, conducted nine monitoring visits to places of detention,
and made 26 on-site inquiries into complaints. The Commission cooperated
with other agencies to inquire into complaints where the subject matters fall
under their purviews. On 22 August, together with the Enforcement Agency
Integrity Commission (EAIC), the Commission visited Juru Immigration Detention
Centre to inquire into allegations of fatal abuse in the centre. The Commission
also conducted a joint inquiry with the National Anti-Drug Agency (AADK) at a
private drug rehabilitation centre in Selangor on 8 December after a complaint
was lodged with the Commission alleging that the centre mistreated and
unlawfully incarcerated the addicts.
In April, the Commission launched two thematic reports, namely “Deaths in
Police Custody: A Study on the Conditions of Lock-Ups and Factors Contributing
to Death” and “Prison Healthcare in Malaysia: Results of a Nationwide Survey
and Report”. The reports, which contain recommendations based on the findings
of the studies, are intended to assist the two main agencies in overcoming the
alarming problems at these places of detention. Round-table discussions on the
two reports will be organised next year to follow up on the outcomes of the
reports.
Although the Commission’s proposal on a mechanism to implement to detention
(ATD) for children in immigration detention was not taken up by the Working
Group on ATD based on legal opinion by the Attorney General’s Chambers, the
Commission was invited in August to present the ATD model to the members of
the newly established task force on the improvement of the management of
children at detention centres in Malaysia, which was chaired by Minister in the
Prime Minister’s Department, Senator Datuk Paul Low. The outcome of the task
force meeting was encouraging and gives hope for the children lingering in
detention.
The reduction in the Commission’s financial allocation did affect the Complaints
and Monitoring Division (CMD)’s activities, in that there was a decrease in the
number of monitoring visits that it made and a delay in the printing of the
thematic reports. Nonetheless, the CMD filled the lacuna with activities that had
minimal financial implications, such as meetings with relevant Government as
well as private agencies to resolve complaints.
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