6 theSun | FRIDAY NOVEMBER 28 2008

news without borders

Court upholds jail, fine

in sex-for-hire case Haslinda arrives at the High Court in
KUALA LUMPUR: The Kuala Lumpur.
High Court here yesterday
upheld the conviction and
sentence of 10 months’ jail
and RM5,000 fine imposed
on a former production
house manager and a
former financial consultant
for acting as intermediaries
for four artistes for the
purpose of prostitution in
1995.
Justice Datuk Mohamad
Zabidin Mohd Diah, in
dismissing the appeals of
Haslinda Merican M.A.
Merican and Mohd Amin
Jamadi, ruled that there was
no misdirection on the part
of the lower court and he
would not interfere with the
conviction and sentence.
Haslinda, 43, and Mohd
Amin, 40, were found guilty
by the sessions court on
Oct 10, 2000, of committing
the offence at Ming Court
Hotel lobby, Jalan Ampang,
between 8pm and 10.30pm
on June 1995. They were
charged under Section 16(1)
of the Women and Girls
Protection Act 1973, which
carries a maximum five
years’ jail or RM10,000 fine,
or both, on conviction. to the Court of Appeal and the organisation of the Le
During the trial, the extended bail of RM5,000 in Tour de Langkawi cycling
names of the artistes, aged one surety for each of them. race from 1996 to 1999.
between 18 and 35, were Haslinda and Mohd Amin Haslinda was involved
not disclosed by order of the remained calm after hearing in drama and documentary
court. the verdict. productions and tourism
Mohamad also dismissed Mohd Amin was a promotions.
the cross-appeal by the consultant for the Eagle Gurbachan Singh later
prosecution. Aircraft project in Malacca told reporters that he would
However, he granted in 1994 and had competed be filing the appeal today.
counsel Gurbachan Singh’s in the jet ski competition Deputy public prosecutor
application for stay of in France in 1995 besides Fariza Hamzah appeared for
execution pending appeal being a principal officer in the prosecution. – Bernama

Don’t leave police out on

town planning, says IGP
GEORGE TOWN: The Inspector-General
of Police (IGP) wants town planning deci-
sions by municipal councils across the
country to be conducted with direct
involvement of the police.
Tan Sri Musa Hassan said
relevant police personnel need
to be present when such plan-
ning decisions are being made
to ensure necessary security
components are included in
the urban areas.
“The police are now being
left out of town planning,” he
said at the forum on “Crime
and Policing” held at the Dewan
Budaya in Universiti Sains Malaysia
(USM) here.
“In any town planning, you have to
invite us so that we can give our sugges-
tions on whether police stations or posts
Tajuddin need to be built in these areas.”
may face Police have also found that many
properties also do not have security
action facilities included.
over He stressed that police feedback is
remarks important in the overall planning of any
town to ensure its designs take into ac-
pg 8 count relevant security precautions and
measures.
Musa cited as an example permis-
sions given by local governments for
entertainment outlets to be set up in
different areas within their respective
towns. He said such planning had caused
difficulty for the police to control illegal
activities like drug transactions that
are drawn to such outlets by criminal
groups.
“It would be better to place these
outlets in one single area for better
control, instead of letting them flourish
like mushrooms,” he said.
“We are then able to enforce effec-
tively against any undesirable activities
that can happen there.”
Musa also pointed out socio-eco-
nomic factors that contributed to crime
in developing areas, such as the migra-
tion of rural folk into cities in search of
better income.
He said the migrants often failed to
obtain employment, prompting them to
resort to criminal activities and to reside
in slums.
He said planning and enforcement to
tackle such demographic matters should
be tackled by the police, and not just the
local authorities.
Musa added that the traditional roles
of the Special Operations Force and
the Marine Police are being realigned
for them to perform normal crime and
community policing functions.
The event was organised by the
Malaysia Crime Prevention Foundation
(MCPF) Penang chapter and USM’s
School of Social Sciences.