2 November 2021 | Today marks Pastor Raymond Koh’s 67th Birthday. This will be the fifth birthday Pastor Raymond Koh is separated from his family since the Special Branch of Malaysia’s Police force abducted him in February 2017.
USCIRF has flagged the case of Pastor Raymond Koh and urged the State Department, in its latest Country Report on Malaysia, to call on the Malaysian authorities to release the findings of the special task force investigating the forced disappearances.
Last year Pastor Raymond Koh’s wife, Susanna Liew, filed a lawsuit against the government of Malaysia, specifically the former inspector general of police Tan Sri Khalid Abu Bakar and Tan Sri Mohamad Fuzi Harun. As reported by the Star: “if the police and their special branch were capable of solving the murder of North Korean national Kim Jong Nam in a week, they should have been capable of solving her [Susanna Liew’s] husband’s enforced disappearance.”
The court-hearing is expected to be held in December. The UN Human Rights Office for South-East Asia issued a statement shortly after the abduction of Pastor Raymond Koh and a document has been filed to the attention of the Working Group on Enforced or Involuntary Disappearances. The Human Rights Commission of Malaysia (Suhakam) found the Special Branch of the Malaysian police force responsible in 2019.
“Yes, sometimes I am afraid what they might be doing to him and how he is now. However, I have to leave it to God and not worry myself sick. God is able to look after him better than me […]
“I believe sooner or later, the truth will come out in one way or another. I am not worried because I know God is in control of everything. Even if Raymond is martyred, he is with God and is in a better place than me. But if he is still alive then, I want to do all I can to get him out. I have had dreams and believe that one of these days soon, we will meet him again.”
– Susanna Liew, wife of Pastor Raymond Koh
This year Jubilee Campaign together with other organisations submitted a letter to the Government of Malaysia on the anniversary of Pastor Raymond Koh’s abduction, calling on the authorities to:
- Release information about the whereabouts and situation of Pastor Raymond Koh and the other victims of enforced disappearance for the sake of the families and the children.
- Grant the families the right to know the truth about the whereabout of their father and husband and provide remedies to the families
- Ensure the impartiality of the Special Task Force.
- Clarify and separate the jurisdictions of the religious authorities and the Royal Malaysia Police.
- Respect freedom of religion as a fundamental human right without discrimination – recognising the freedom to adopt or leave a religion or belief. Repeal Malaysian courts practice of criminalizing apostasy, including their practice of placing adults into re-education facilities against their will.
- Ratify the International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights
Background
Pastor Raymond Koh (Pastor Koh), is a Christian pastor from Malaysia who Prior to his abduction, he ran an NGO focused on people living with HIV/AIDs, recovering addicts, and single mothers and children. On February 13, 2017, three black SUVs forced Pastor Koh to pull over on a highway in Petaling Jaya in the Malaysian state of Selangor. Footage from CCTV [below] shows at least 15 men emerging from the SUVs to abduct Pastor Koh. This is the last public footage of Pastor Koh.