Mahathir attacks rivals' stance on ISA detentions<\/p>\n
KUALA LUMPUR (AP): Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad slammed
\nMalaysia's opposition parties Sunday for condemning a crackdown
\non what the government has described as a militant criminal gang.<\/p>\n
"This shows how stupid they are," Mahathir was quoted as
\nsaying by the national news agency, Bernama. "Even if people get
\nmurdered or whatever, they claim that it's a charade."<\/p>\n
Police recently detained 10 men accused of carrying out
\nmurders, robberies and attacks on churches and temples as part of
\na campaign for a hard-line Islamic state. Another five suspects
\nare still believed to be at large.<\/p>\n
Authorities detained the men under the Internal Security Act
\n(ISA), which allows for indefinite detention without trial. Some
\nof the men are members of the opposition fundamentalist Pan-
\nMalaysian Islamic Party.<\/p>\n
Mahathir on Sunday pledged that the suspects would be charged
\nin court eventually. Lawyers have mounted a legal battle to free
\nsome of them, saying that the detentions are unconstitutional.<\/p>\n
The government has denied that political motives were behind
\nthe clampdown on the so-called Mujahidin Militant Group, which is
\nallegedly led by the son of the Islamic opposition group's
\nspiritual leader.<\/p>\n
The Islamic Party is accusing authorities of trying to smear
\nits reputation and retaliate for the party's criticism of an
\nofficial ban on public political rallies.<\/p>\n
Government officials have sought to maintain support among
\nethnic Malay Muslims, who comprise about 60 percent of Malaysia's
\n23 million people, since retaining power in a 1999 general
\nelection.<\/p>\n
The sizable ethnic Chinese and Indian minorities helped
\nMahathir's ruling coalition win 75 percent of the seats in
\nParliament, but the fundamentalist party drew large numbers of
\nMalay voters.<\/p>",
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