Maria Chin's son fears for her health under Sosma detention, lodges police report

PETALING JAYA: Fearing for his mother's health, Maria Chin Abdullah's eldest son Azumin Yunus wants police to release the Bersih 2.0 chairperson from detention immediately.
Azumin said Maria has a medical history and is worried her hypertension and arthritis will act up.
"I am afraid that her detention under the Security Offences (Special Measures) Act, or Sosma, would endanger her health.
"When I met my mother at the Dang Wangi district police headquarters on Sunday, she informed us that she was living in a small cell with no proper bed, no blanket, windows and the lights were left on all the time," he told reporters after lodging a police report at the district police headquarters here today.
Azumin was accompanied by PKR member of parliament N.Surendran and Lawyers For Liberty executive director Eric Paulsen.
"My mother does not deserve solitary confinement and she is not a terrorist either," Azumin added.
Paulsen, who is also representing Maria, said he will lodge a report with the United Nations on the government's decision to detain her using a law designed to fight terrorism.
He also wanted police to explain why police have used Sosma to detain Maria.
Under Sosma 2012, a person can be arrested without a warrant and be held for 24 hours for investigation.
The police may, however, extend the detention for up to 28 days for the purpose of investigations, and if the detained person is released before the end of the 28 days, the police may propose attaching an electronic monitoring device, through a court order, for the remainder of the 28-day period.
Maria was detained on Friday under Section 124C of the Penal Code that criminalises the attempt to commit activities detrimental to parliamentary democracy.