Amir Abd Hadi
Students tired of being victimised by gov’t
Amir Hariri Abd Hadi is the coordinator of the “Right to Trial” programme at SUARAM and works on issues such as the right to a fair trial, security laws and detention without trial. He also coordinates the advocacy group on freedom of expression, the Movement for the abolishment of the Sedition Act, and with a group working on youth empowerment.
Amir began his activism in 2012 as a student activist and then he became a member of SUARAM. Because of his activism, he has been tear-gassed, harassed and arrested. He was first arrested during the “Kita Lawan” rally in March 2015; then he was arrested again and detained for 3 days during the “Tangkap Najib” protests in August 2015 and in 2016 during the “Bantah TPPA protest” for a speech and a song. The anti-TPPA is a coalition of 61 organisations that oppose the TPPA, a trade agreement between 12 Pacific Rim nations. Amir has also been called for questioning by the police a few times and threatened by the government and unknown individuals.
Human rights defenders in Malaysia face judicial harassment, arbitrary arrest, threats, intimidation and smear campaigns. HRDs active against corruption, calling for electoral reform and free and fair election are particularly vulnerable.
