KUALA LUMPUR: Pastor Raymond Koh's family cried foul today over the government's conflicting stance in their bid to obtain a classified report, comparing it to a similar case involving missing activist Amri Che Mat.
Lawyer Datuk Jerald Gomez, who appeared for the family, raised this in the High Court stating that the government wa opposing their request for the document in their ongoing civil lawsuit over Koh's disappearance, according to a report by Free Malaysia Today.
He said the government has abandoned its appeal against another High Court decision in Amri's case, where the court had ordered the release of the classified report to Amri's wife, Norhayati Ariffin.
"There is no reason for the government to discriminate against Susanna Liew (Koh's wife) in her discovery application.
"National security is not considered threatened since part of the contents have been disclosed to Norhayati," said Gomez.
Excerpts from the classified report were submitted as evidence in Norhayati's lawsuit against the police and government, focusing on the handling of the investigation into Amri's disappearance.
Liew argued that the report was crucial to the lawsuit, asserting that Koh's family had a right to access the special task force's findings on his disappearance.
Meanwhile, senior federal counsel Nurul Farhana Khalid, representing the police and the government, argued that the task force report was not relevant to Liew's lawsuit.
She said the report's findings were merely recommendations and the court was not bound by them.
She said the current suit alleges that the police were involved in Koh's kidnapping and engaged in misfeasance, with the burden of proving these allegations resting on the plaintiff through evidence presented during the trial.
Judge Su Tiang Joo fixed Aug 15 for decision.
On April 3, 2019, the Human Rights Commission of Malaysia (Suhakam) revealed that two missing persons, Koh and social activist Amri Che Mat, were victims of an enforced disappearance.
Then chairman Datuk Mah Weng Kwai said the commission was of the considered view that the enforced disappearance of the two was carried out by agents of the state, namely Bukit Aman Special Branch.
Amri, who was the founder of Perlis non-governmental organisation Hope, reportedly went missing after he had left his home in Kangar at 11.30pm on Nov 24, 2016.
Amri was driving a Toyota Fortuner when it was "boxed in" at the material time. About an hour later, Amri's vehicle was found abandoned at a construction site at Bukit Chabang in Kangar.
Less than three months later, Koh was last seen by his wife on Feb 13, 2017 at 10.15am.
It was reported that Koh was abducted by a group of men along Jalan SS4B/10 in Petaling Jaya while on his way to a friend's house.