Saturday 23 July 2011

Cops send Uncle Bersih to psychiatric ward

Maverick Sarawak activist Hii Tiong Huat, who had been arrested by police thrice in two weeks for supporting Bersih 2.0, was sent to psychiatric ward last night by the police.

malaysiakini acnmc conference 021010 chou z lamAccording to documentary film-maker Chou Z Lam (right), who visited Hii last night and this morning at the hospital, Hii was admitted to Hospital Kuala Lumpur's psychiatric ward without his permission.

"After he was released by the police last night, he insisted that the police send him to hospital to have his injuries examined.
"He said the injuries were caused by the police, therefore they were responsible to send him to the hospital," Chou said when contacted today.

However, without Hii's consent and knowledge, said Chou, the police arranged with the hospital authorities and sent him to the psychiatric ward instead.

NONE"The doctor rejected my demand to have him discharged on the grounds that I'm not his family member.
"Currently we are getting a lawyer to deal with the situation," he said, adding that Hii's family resides in Sibu, Sarawak.

Chou said Hii (left, in yellow) was calm when he met him last night and this morning.

"He complained that other patients had spat on his injuries, saying that it would cure them. The hospital did not treat his injuries properly.

"I'm worried about his situation. His mobile phone has been taken away. What happens if he is hurt by other patients? Who should be responsible?" Chow asked.

Arrested three times

Hii was first arrested one day before the Bersih 2.0 rally for holding a one-man protest in Petaling Street, and was released after being held for five days.

NONEHe then lodged a complaint with the Human Rights Commission (Suhakam), claiming that the police had slapped him nearly 10 times while he was in their custody.

Unperturbed by the arrest, the "Uncle Bersih", as netizens call him after a YouTube video of him being arrested received hundreds of thousands of views, repeated the stunt at the entrance of the Pudu LRT station yesterday morning, resulting in his second arrest.

His third arrest took place soon after he was released.

According to Hii, he was arrested around 1pm while waiting at a bus stop with his self-made Bersih 2.0 signboard.
He claimed that he was not protesting but merely sitting at the bus stop.

NONEHii accused the police of pushing him to the ground during the arrest, causing him to suffer injuries on various parts of his body.

The Sarawak activist had contested in the 2011 Sarawak state election as an Independent but lost his deposit. 

He has also announced he will be running for Lanang parliamentary seat in the next general election. 

Hii is well-known in Sibu for his eccentric behaviour and campaign gimmicks during the elections.

Later in the afternoon, DAP Teratai assemblyperson Janice Lee and a lawyer turned up at the hospital to demand for Hii's discharge.

The attending doctor eventually agreed to discharge him on the condition that one of his family members comes to the hospital to sign the relevant documentation.

Chou said Hii's wife will fly to Kuala Lumpur tonight from Sibu to attend to the necessary paperwork.

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