KUALA LUMPUR: The High Court here today allowed an application by six Chinese national women for a stay of their deportation pending the disposal of their application for habeas corpus or wrongful detention.
Judge Datuk Azhar Abdul Hamid granted the application by the six women, made through their lawyer, J. Matthews, after the prosecution, represented by deputy public prosecutor Syajaratudur Abd Rahman did not object to it.
The six Chinese nationals are engineer Fu Xiaoling, 40; opera artist Fu Xiaoyan, 37; technical consultant Zhong Li, 27; account assistant, Ai Xi, 31, model Huang Ting, 33, and Zhao Jinming, 26.
"The court granted the stay application (adjournment) and set Oct 2 to hear the habeas corpus application," said Judge Azhar.
The six women filed the habeas corpus application on Sept 9.
They named the Director of the Malaysian Immigration Department (JIM), the Director General of Immigration, the Home Minister, the Commandant of the Bukit Jalil Immigration Detention Depot and the Malaysian Government as the respondents.
They are seeking the court to release them immediately and unconditionally from the custody of the Commandant of the Bukit Jalil Immigration Detention Depot.
In a supporting affidavit, Matthews said the six women were arrested by JIM during a raid at an entertainment centre last Aug 22, and after the expiry of their remand period they were ordered to be deported from the country even though all the applicants had valid visas to enter Malaysia.
He claimed that the applicants, who have valid employment and visit passes, had not been convicted of any offense or sentenced for any offense related to their arrest since Aug 22.
As such, he said, the arrest and deportation order issued on the applicants was premature, not supported by solid evidence, an abuse of power and an action exceeding the provisions in the Immigration Act 1959/1963.
– Bernama