Kamunting Detention Center

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Kamunting Detention Center is a prison camp located in Kamunting, near the town of Taiping, Perak, in Malaysia. The prison is used by the government to detain and interrogate persons arrested under the Internal Security Act (ISA). It is alleged that this is the site where the Malaysian authorities would hold up political prisoners, usually from the opposition, and conduct torture against detainees.^[1] Among notable events which prompted widespread use of the ISA were Operation Lalang in 1987 and the years during the Reformasi movement, beginning 1999.

Some notable detainees include, former deputy prime minister Anwar Ibrahim, opposition leader Lim Kit Siang, Sabah politician Jeffrey Kitingan, human rights lawyer Karpal Singh, and many others. In December 2007, one of the Hindu Rights Action Force (HINDRAF) member and leader, M. Manoharan, was arrested under the ISA and detained in Kamunting. As of February 2008, he has yet been released despite being successfully elected as a state assemblyman for Selangor in the 2008 general election.

The detention has also been used to detain other groups of people declared by the government to be a threat to national security such as terrorists and cults. Some notable groups detained in Kamunting includes the Al-Arqam cult and the Al-Ma'unah terrorist group.

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