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| NEWS > 10 March 2008 |
Other related articles:
Malaysia: Government must inve
The Malaysian authorities must initiate an independent, impartial, prompt and effective investigation into the death of 22-year-old Kugan Ananthan, Amnesty International said today, amid reports that he may have been tortured in police custody.
The young man died on 20 January after being held for five days in the Taipan Police station in Subang Jaya in west Malaysia on suspicion of stealing cars. State Police Chief Datuk Khalid Abu Bakar has said that Kugan was being questioned by an investigating officer when he asked for a glass of water and suddenly collapsed. Police initially cl... Read more
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 Article sourced from
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Independent Online - Cape Town
10 March 2008
This article appeared in the above title/site.
To view it in its entirity click this link.
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South Africa: 'Brutal, violent
Stellenbosch students, their parents and club owners are outraged at what they have described as brutal drug raids on nightspots in the student town on Friday night, and some are considering taking legal action against the police.
Police found only a small plastic bank bag and two joints of dagga and three grams of hashish, at the clubs.
Several witnesses have come forward, describing how the police, wearing Kevlar vests and carrying firearms, burst into Bohemia, Die Mystic Boer and Springbok Pub around midnight and assaulted several students, sprayed them with mace, took their cellphones and ordered them to delete cellphone pictures of the raid.
Police officers also reportedly put their hands in some womens' underwear to search for drugs.
Willem Coertze, owner of Die Mystic Boer, said he was punched in the face and had his wrists tied behind his back with cable ties after asking a police officer why his club was being raided and whether there was a search warrant.
Coertze said a warrant was produced only after the raid.
He said he and the owner of Bohemia had consulted a lawyer and were taking criminal and civil steps against the police for what they described as a "brutal and violent" raid.
Coertze said he was shocked by how he and his customers were treated.
"I understand they have a job to do and I always accommodate them. But this time they just burst in, assaulted my customers and hit me in the face when I said I was the owner. They also pointed guns at us.
"I already have between 30 and 40 statements from witnesses and I have CCTV footage to prove it."
One student, who asked to remain anonymous, had a blue eye and several bruises on his face, after being kicked four times in the face, allegedly by a police officer, after he and his friends were ordered to lie on the ground in the pool room in Die Mystic Boer.
"They told us to stop drinking and smoking. My friend lit up a cigarette and they slapped him in the face. I yelled: "Dude, what the f**k are you doing to my friend? That's when they hit me and kicked me four times in the face. Then they sprayed mace or pepper spray in my eyes." Niel Bekker, a journalism graduate and son of Koos Bekker, the chief executive of Naspers, said he saw a man from the Netherlands who had been invited to speak at the Woordfees and his Belgian friend confront the police.
The Belgian man and his girlfriend, who tried to intervene, were knocked against a wall.
He also saw how a girl, who was having an asthma attack and who tried to use her phone, was hit with a baton. Stefan Sessa, the marketing manager at Cia Media, also at Die Mystic Boer, said police hit him and threw him to the ground. Johan Blom, who was at Springbok Pub with his friends, said a police officer shouted at everyone to "put away your f**king phones" and when he asked her why she was swearing at him, he had pepper spray sprayed into his eyes.
"I had to rely on my friend to lead me home, because I was blinded." Bevan Williams, who was also in the Springbok Pub, said his doctor confirmed his eardrum had ruptured when a police officer hit him after he tried to take a picture of him.
Asked why the police were armed and dressed in riot gear, police spokesperson Elliot Sinyangana said they had to be "prepared for anything". He confirmed that only a small quantity of drugs was found.
He said the raid was in response to complaints from residents.
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