(Dec 7): A lawyers’ group today urged Putrajaya and the Sarawak government to stop barring opposition and civil society leaders from entering the state, saying such restrictions violate the rights of Malaysians to participate in elections and other public affairs.

Lawyers for Liberty executive director Eric Paulsen said any limitation of entry into Sarawak should only be for reasonable exercise of discretion on security, public order, public health and punishment of offenders.

“Needless to say, these reasons are not applicable to Nurul Izzah and many other members of the opposition or civil society (like Rafizi Ramli, Tian Chua, Datuk Ambiga Sreenevasan and Cynthia) Gabriel who were previously barred from entering the state,” he said in a statement.

PKR vice-president Nurul Izzah Anwar was stopped at the Kuching airport upon her arrival from KLIA yesterday.

The Lembah Pantai MP was stopped by immigration officers at the passport control counter soon after touching down at the Kuching International Airport at 4pm on an AirAsia flight.

PKR central committee member Dr Xavier Jayakumar, who was with her on the flight, told reporters that immigration officers informed Nurul Izzah the order came from the Chief Minister’s Office.

Last week, she was barred from entering Sabah after a photo of her and Jacel Kiram, daughter of Jamalul Kiram III, who was behind the 2013 Sabah incursion, went viral on social media.

Paulsen (pic, right) said Section 67 of the Immigration Act made clear that the state’s powers to restrict entry should not have effect on a citizen who could show that the purpose of visiting the state was to engage in legitimate political activity.

He said the practice of barring political opponents was clearly politically motivated, irrational and a blatant abuse of immigration powers, as well as the 18-point agreement between Sarawak and Malaya before the formation of Malaysia in 1963.

“Such a policy directly contravenes the freedom of movement guaranteed in Article 9 of the Federal Constitution, where every citizen of Malaysia has the right to move freely throughout the federation,” he added. – The Malaysian Insider