Nine witnesses give statements

KUALA LUMPUR: Nine people have given their statements to the police as investigations continue into the improvised explosive devices (IEDs) planted on lawyer Siti Kasim’s car.

“The police have called nine witnesses to record their statements. CCTV footage has also been obtained.

“We are going through each CCTV of places that the victim had informed us of and investigations are still ongoing,” city police chief Comm Datuk Mohd Shuhaily Mohd Zain told the media in a text message.

Meanwhile, Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Razarudin Husain was quoted as saying that the incident was suspected to be attempted murder and the police were still tracking down the suspect via fingerprints and other evidence.

“The discovery of the bomb shows that it is a serious crime and the threat is akin to an attempted murder,” he told a Malay daily.

When contacted, Siti Kasim described the recent attempt on her life as an act of terrorism by people looking to silence her right to free speech.

She claimed that the IEDs had been planted on her car in an attempt to silence her vocal views against the use of religion in politics.

“I do not have any enemies that I know of nor do I see any reason for someone to directly go after a lawyer like myself.

“The only reason I could think of is someone with extremist views of religion as I have been a vocal advocate against the use of religion in politics.

“These people are keen to silence me. They don’t seem to understand that I have never criticised Islam but only the inappropriate use of Islam in politics,” she said.

Siti Kasim expressed disappointment with the lack of condemnation by political leaders against the life-threatening act.

“To have a bomb placed in my car which could endanger not just me but the lives of other people should be regarded as an act of terrorism.

“I have yet to hear any public statements from the political leaders condemning it,” she added.

On July 21, Siti Kasim discovered the now-confirmed explosives underneath her car as it was being serviced at a workshop in Bangsar.

Meanwhile, the Coalition for Clean and Fair Elections (Bersih) urged the government to show a zero-tolerance attitude to what they described as an assassination attempt.

“If this becomes a trend, it will cause as much harm as the use of 3R (race, religion and royalty) issues.

“Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim himself must make a clear stand that he will nip this in the bud before such violence becomes part of our political and societal culture,” the electoral watchdog’s steering committee said in a statement.