Five more with SSKM T-shirts held

Moral support: Some youths waiting outside the Lahad Datu police station for their fellow activists to be released.

KOTA KINABALU: Five more activists have been detained near Lahad Datu for distributing seditious materials linked to a secessionist movement.

The arrests followed the detention of nine people last Sunday on suspicion of having links with the group.

The five, including two women, were arrested in Tungku, about 100km from Lahad Datu town, while they were filling up petrol at about 5.15pm on Saturday.

Sabah Progressive Party (SAPP) president Datuk Yong Teck Lee met the five detainees, aged between 23 and 56, to provide them with legal representation.

He added that police obtained a remand order against them until Wednesday.

“Police said they were remanded because the car they were in had T-shirts and leaflets with Sabah Sarawak Keluar Malaysia (SSKM) written on them,” Yong said.

It is understood that the five were detained under the Sedition Act and Printing Presses and Publication Act.

Last Sunday, nine people between the ages of 24 and 50 were arrested while soliciting signatures for a petition seeking the secession of Sabah at the weekly tamu (open market) in Tuaran.

However, they were released on bail 12 hours later.

Yong, who was also asked by the nine to be their legal counsel, said he was informed of their detention at about 1.30pm the same day.

He said at 5.10pm, 18 people were asked to be guarantors for the nine detainees. All nine were released at 6.20pm.