CALLS for a royal commission of inquiry (RCI) into the Memali incident are growing.
The latest call was by a Pas leader, who claimed that the 1985 incident, which claimed the lives of 14 civilians and four policemen, was not sparked by “Amanat Hadi”, as claimed by former prime minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad.
Kedah Pas special committee on Memali chairman Datuk Muhamad Yusuf Husin said contrary to claims in the White Paper on Memali released in 1986, when Dr Mahathir was in power, the incident was believed to be triggered by objections against the Internal Security Act (ISA).
He said the tragedy was sparked by a movement against the ISA, led by slain preacher Ibrahim Mahmud, also known as Ibrahim Libya.
Yusuf, a former senator, claimed that there were many fabricated facts and lies in the White Paper, including allegations that Ibrahim was an extremist who was leading an armed movement to topple the government.
“That was totally absurd as Ibrahim was clearly objecting to the draconian Internal Security Act (ISA), which was against the principles of Islam.
“Ibrahim was merely objecting to the law, which gives the government the power to detain anyone without trial.
“He was adamant that he would rather die than be detained under the ISA. He was not, at any time, mobilising a revolutionary movement to topple the government,” he said in an interview at his home.
Yusuf, who was among more than 100 civilians detained during the incident, claimed that most of the facts in the White Paper were fabricated and misleading with the intention to paint a bad picture of Ibrahim and his followers.
Citing an example, Yusuf said he was accused of being the leader of a mujahiddin movement simply because he was close to the late Ibrahim.
“We were just a bunch of villagers and rubber tappers who were defending our religious teacher from being detained under the ISA.
“We did not have any firearms as alleged in the White Paper, and we had nothing to do with any radical movement in southern Thailand whatsoever.”
He was responding to a recent statement by Dr Mahathir blaming Malaysian mufti for not countering Pas’ decree, the so-called “Amanat Hadi”, when it became public in the 1980s.
“Amanat Hadi” was allegedly a call by current Pas president Datuk Seri Abdul Hadi Awang in 1981, labelling supporters of Barisan Nasional as infidels.
However, Dewan Ulama Pas chief Datuk Dr Mahfodz Mohamed had since come out to say that Umno was no longer like it was in those days as it had taken on a different approach.
“Amanat Hadi was decreed then as Umno, under Dr Mahathir, was terrible... anti-Islam,” he was reported as saying in Utusan Malaysia.
In the Memali incident on Nov 19, 1985, violence erupted when villagers resisted the police’s attempt to arrest Ibrahim, who was also a local Pas leader, under the ISA over deviant teachings, an allegation that Pas rejected.
Eighteen people were killed and more than 100 people were injured in the clash.
Yusuf claimed that many retired police officers involved in the Memali tragedy had expressed willingness to shed light on the incident by testifying at the proposed RCI.
He said the retired officers were keen to testify at the RCI should the government push for its establishment, following requests from victims’ family members.
He said the cops were hoping that the truth behind the tragedy 33 years ago would be revealed.
“There are many disputable facts in the White Paper on Memali.
“Hence, it is vital for the retired policemen who were involved in the tragedy to be called up to testify at the proposed RCI.
“We need to hear their side of story because we have learnt that some police officers had disagreed with decisions by their top brass from Bukit Aman due to alleged political interference.”
He urged the government to expedite the setting up of the RCI as many victims and witnesses of the incident had died, with only a small number still alive.