TUNIS, May 7 - Tunisia's tough law on cannabis use, laying down jail terms of at least one year, is "destroying lives" and overcrowding prisons, according to a group of activists urging reform. Since the law was passed more than 20 years ago, "tens of thousands of Tunisians have been convicted," the group said in an open letter to the government. "But the number of people sentenced and the number of users continue to grow, proving that this law is not a deterrent. It has failed," said the group, named Al Sajin 52 (or Prisoner 52) as the law is called. [continues 557 words]
MALAYSIAN Crime Prevention Foundation (MCPF) vice-chairman, Tan Sri Lee Lam Thye lamented that drug addiction has been the number one social scourge in Malaysia for the past three decades. In a statement here today, he said the situation caused big problems for the country and the majority of drug addicts appeared to be between 19 and 39 years old. "It's critical to come up with a more effective strategy towards making Malaysia a drug free nation by 2015. "The responsibility for battling drugs rests on continuous efforts involving families and society," he emphasised. [continues 65 words]
SHAH ALAM: Illegal immigrant Rosli Hassan was yesterday sentenced to eight years' jail and ordered whipped 10 times -- all for a mere RM100 profit from a drug sale. Rosli, 24, a canteen helper was caught with 209gm of cannabis at a bus-stop at Jalan 25/61 in Seksyen 25, Shah Alam, at 4pm on Feb 28, 2005. He had bought the drugs for RM400 and was about to sell it to a buyer for RM500 when he was arrested. Rosli escaped the gallows after the charge was amended from trafficking to one of drug possession. High Court judge Datuk K.N. Segara said: "You are lucky the charge was amended. I hope you have learnt your lesson." [end]
SHAH ALAM: A 37-year-old man was sentenced to 10 years' jail and ordered to be given 10 strokes of the rotan by the High Court yesterday, after pleading guilty to an alternative charge of possessing more than 200g of cannabis. Judicial Commissioner Datuk Zaharah Ibrahim ordered Alley Anuar Mohamad to serve his sentence from the date of his arrest, on May 23, 2004. Earlier, counsel Samry Masri and Aminuddin Mohd Ramli told the court that Alley has regretted his actions. [continues 149 words]
NIBONG TEBAL, March 4: Police believe they have crippled one of the major dadah pipelines in the northern region with the arrest of two suspects and seizure of drugs worth more RM600,000. The bust was made in a raid at a double-storey house in Taman Jentayu, Simpang Ampat here at 4.30pm Thursday. The suspects tried to escape through the ceiling but failed when the 10-man team from the South Seberang Perai police moved in. The team found 210kg of ganja in 210 slabs and more than 5kg of heroin, some in compressed form, inside the house. [continues 133 words]
A 39-year-old lorry driver escaped the gallows after admitting to being in possession of 226 grammes of cannabis at his home in Kampung Seri Aman three years ago. The prosecution, which had initially charged Wagiman Ahmad with trafficking amended the charge to possession yesterday. He then pleaded guilty to the charge. Wagiman told the court that the drugs were for his personal consumption. The High Court sentenced him to 10 years'jail and 10 strokes of the rotan. Judge Datuk K.N. Segara said: "You are lucky the prosecution offered an alternative charge of possession, as you were initially facing the gallows." [continues 87 words]
KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 25: Located on the highest point of Bukit Kerinchi and 500 metres from the nearest house, this spot could have been a suitable weekend escape for city folk. But dadah addicts and pushers had turned it into their haven. Police cleared the spot six months ago, but in a surprise check early yesterday, they found it 're-occupied'. The more disturbing discovery is that the dadah haunt is run in a more organised manner. A police team from the Brickfields narcotic division surprised five suspected addicts, including a 21-year-old woman, from their sleep about 5.30am. It is learnt that there were more suspects at the haunt, but many escaped. Police seized 42 tubes containing heroin and 15 tubes containing syabu at the haunt. The suspects, in their 20s and 30s, were remanded for further investigation. [end]
Penang, Feb 15: Police uncovered a drug-processing laboratory and seized a German-made pistol and an assortment of drugs in six separate raids here since Jan 16. Four women were among 14 detained in connection with the raids in George Town, Jelutong, Bukit Mertajam, Seberang Jaya and Kepala Batas. A Myanmar and an Indonesian were among the men nabbed. The suspects, believed to be traffickers, are being investigated under Section 39B of the Dangerous Drugs Act. They face the mandatory death penalty upon conviction. [continues 226 words]
KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 20: A car repossessor wept tears of relief when the High Court here discharged and acquitted him of trafficking 60.2gm of heroin and monoacetmorphine six years ago. The reality that he had escaped the gallows, at first did not quite sink in for K. Puvaneaswaran, 31. After Justice Datuk S. Augus-tine Paul acquitted him, he turned to a court policeman who nodded and smiled in reassurance. Then a teary-eyed Puvaneas-waran turned to his wife and mother in the public gallery who were equally moved. [continues 229 words]
SUBANG JAYA, Jan 10: Two friends from Besut, Terengganu, will have to celebrate Hari Raya Haji in jail after they were nabbed for possession of five kilogrammes of 'daun ketum' in Puchong here on Saturday. The men, in their late 20s, were to have returned to their kampung yesterday with the leaves - scientifically known as Mitragyna speciosa - - if not for a run-in with four Rela members on patrol in Kampung Sri Aman about 4pm on Saturday. It is learnt that the duo had picked the leaves from trees that grow not far from the kampung before they were arrested. [continues 271 words]
The authorities have been urged to step up enforcement against drug pushers and addicts to curb the spread of HIV/AIDS in the country. This call came from National HIV/AIDS Awareness Campaign Roadshow adviser Datuk Liow Tiong Lai yesterday. He said statistics revealed that most people infected with HIV/AIDS are drug addicts. He said: "Although Malaysia has strict laws against drug trafficking, drugs are still easily accessible. More stringent action is needed to fight the drug menace." Liow was speaking at the launch of the National HIV/AIDS Awareness Campaign Roadshow event in Petaling Street. It was organised by the Young Malaysian Movement (YMM). [continues 138 words]
Wrong company is to be blamed when a prisoner or a dadah addict is released after serving his prison sentence, and he goes back to his old ways in the first six months. While many of them want to turn over a new leaf, some of them face rejection from their own family members because of the crimes that they had committed. The stigma of being a criminal stays for a long time, and many of these ex-prisoners have no place to turn to but their old friends who eventually influence them to go back to their old habits. [continues 466 words]
Police believe they have uncovered a syndicate dealing in cocaine following the arrest of two African nationals and the seizure of the drug in Jalan Kuchai Lama on Monday night. The two, aged 25 and 26, who claimed to be from South Africa, were detained separately for the possession of 17 packets of a substance believed to be cocaine. The Malay Mail learnt that the last time city police made a cocaine seizure was in 2002. They found 40 capsules containing the drug in the stomach of a Nigerian national. [continues 261 words]
Bukit Mertajam, Nov 23: Two Indonesian couples had dreams of making it rich in Malaysia. Leaving their hometown in Aceh, they arrived in Penang in July, obtaining re-fugee status from the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR). However, the four allegedly became involved in drug trafficking. In the four months that followed, the men and their wives became suppliers of ganja and syabu to addicts in the northern region. Their double-storey house in Taman Markisa displayed expensive furniture, suspected to have been bought with proceeds from the sale of drugs. [continues 166 words]
A man who claimed to be a bodyguard of the Pahang royal household was among 12 people arrested during a crime prevention operation around Dataran Merdeka early yesterday. The man, believed to be in his 50s, was initially detained as the Proton Waja he was driving had a strobe light similar to the one used by cops in unmarked cars. The Waja was fitted with the emblem of the Kerabat Di Raja Pahang (Pahang Royalty). The man claimed he was sight-seeing with his girlfriend, a 22-year- old student of a college in Nilai. [continues 190 words]
HIS name is Suresh. At the age of 19, he was a heroin addict. He was a physical wreck, infected with AIDS, tuberculosis and Hepatitis C. He was taken to hospital before he sought help from a half-way home run by Malaysian CARE. Upon recommendation, he was taken into Green Pastures Regeneration and Renewal Centre for a two-year rehabilitation programme. "Within a short time, his overall condition improved. Soon, he was taking part in physical activities," said Geoff Matthews, who founded (along with Chris Sekar and St Andrews Church) the Green Pastures Home for the Rehabilitation of Ex-Drug Addicts. It was first located in Klang in 1991), and moved to Taman United, Kuala Lumpur in 1993. [continues 324 words]
The sprawling Kuala Lumpur Hospital compound is 'dadah-free' after a syndicate leader was caught carrying suspected heroin in a plastic bag on Friday. Clients of the 35-year-old man, known as Saphi, included patients who bought the dadah at the carpark or nearby staff quarters. City police's Narcotics Division arrested the man, who had eluded arrest for a year, at a parking lot near the Emergency Unit about 2.30am. The team seized 90 packets of dadah, believed to be heroin, weighing about 182 grammes from the suspect. [continues 204 words]
A former Universiti Teknologi Mara (UiTM) student was sentenced to 10 years' jail and 10 strokes of the rotan by the High Court yesterday after pleading guilty to an alternative charge of possessing cannabis. Judge Datuk K. N. Segara ordered Fazil Ibrahim, 28, to serve his sentence from the date of his arrest on May 22, 2002. In passing sentence, Segara said: "It is such a pity. You are a bright student, and it is sad to see your life go to waste. [continues 99 words]
A multisectoral approach is needed to fight the disease with the rising numbers of cases, Malaysian AIDS Council president, Marina Mahathir, tells Jeswant Kaur MALAYSIA would not be on the brink of a HIV/AIDS epidemic if we had paid more attention to the early warning signs. Instead, a reluctance to confront the problem head-on and a false sense of security have resulted in the recent World Health Organisation warning that the country is at the initial stage of a HIV break out. [continues 1054 words]
An Indonesian lorry driver was yesterday sentenced by the High Court to 15 years' jail and ordered to given 10 strokes of the rotan for having 980.3gm of cannabis five years ago. Mohamed Nor, 40, admitted having the drug in Jalan PJS4/27B, Taman Medan, Petaling Jaya about 5.40pm on July 13, 2000. The charge under Section 6 and punishable under Section 39A (2) of the Dangerous Drugs Act 1952 carries a jail term of between five and 20 years, and whipping of not less than 10 strokes. [continues 93 words]
