MCLM chief barred from entering Sabah

Haris Ibrahim has been barred from entering the state and was sent back to KL on the next available flight.

PETALING JAYA: Malaysian Civil Liberties Movement (MCLM) president Haris Ibrahim has been barred from entering Sabah and was sent back to Kuala Lumpur on the next available flight.

Contacted by FMT prior to his departure, the lawyer said he had landed at the Kota Kinabalu airport at about 3.15pm.

“I have just been told that ‘atas arahan atasan’ (orders from a higher authority), I have been denied entry. I am still at the immigration awaiting details,” he said.

He later added that the formal notice stated that he was detained under Section 65 (1) of the Immigration Act 1959/1963 and that he had been denied entry on the direction of state authority.

Asked if he was there for MCLM-related activities, Haris said that the movement had some work with political parties and NGOs in Sabah.

“I presume the order (to prevent entry to Sabah) is related (to the political activities in Sabah),” he added.

Haris, who was previously attached to election watchdog Bersih 2.0, was also denied entry into Sarawak twice — in April during the state election and September this year.

It is believed that he was stopped from entering Sarawak under the similar law.

Under the Malaysia Agreement, Sarawak and Sabah have the power to bar anyone from entering the states, including persons from Peninsular Malaysia.

FMT