KUALA LUMPUR: It was revealed that naval cadet officer J. Soosaimanicckam, who passed away during training, had allegedly been subjected to assault by a senior officer at the KD Sultan Idris Navy base before his death six years ago.
A former cadet at the same base, Anas Hakimi Mat @ Ahmad testified in court today that he witnessed the officer known as "Ariff" sitting on Soosaimanicckam's stomach and repeatedly slapping him one day before his death.
Anas, now a lawyer, recounted the incident while he and others were engaged in physical exercises.
Soosaimanicckam was found dead the following day on May 19, 2018.
During today's trial in the negligence lawsuit by the deceased's family against the Royal Malaysian Navy (TLDM) and a few others, Anas stated that he was in court to seek justice for the deceased.
"The 10th defendant, Lieutenant Junior Ariff, a day before the deceased's death, sat on top of the deceased, on his abdomen and slapped the deceased's face repeatedly.
"On the day of the incident when we were present, he (Soosaimanicckam) was hit, and almost everyone attending the training saw him being hit," he said.
The witness testified that an officer named Major Rahim later arrived at the scene and defused the situation.
Anas said the deceased was targeted because he could not compete with other trainees in naval cadet training.
Anas also said Soosaimanicckam had been discriminated against by the superiors at KD Sultan Idris.
He said the cadet had wanted to call in sick but the officer-in-charge, Faiz Zanila, rejected his application.
"Faiz accused Soosai of being 'manja' (pampered)," he said.
Anas told the court that the deceased was always discriminated against because of his race, with several sick leave applications being rejected and labelled as "manja".
During cross-examination by senior federal counsel Nur Ezdlani Roheb, Anas disagreed that Soosaimanicckam's isolation and harsh treatment were intended to strengthen their discipline and boost their fighting spirit.
Anas also disagreed with the federal counsel that his statement regarding racial motives behind the treatment of the deceased was merely speculation and assumption made after the incident.
The hearing before Judge Idah will resume on April 17.