Abdoolcader J:

Tan Boon Liat who enjoys the intriguing monosyllabic alias of Allen which might well perhaps be his nom de guerre in the operations ascribed to him seeks a writ of habeas corpus on an application returnable and argued before me seven days ago on the complaint that his initial and continued detention in the Detention Camp, Pulau Jerejak, Penang, under an order made by the Minister of Home Affairs, Malaysia, in the exercise of the powers conferred on him by s. 4(1) of the Emergency (Public Order and Prevention of Crime) Ordinance, 1969 ("the Ordinance") is illegal and unlawful as the grounds on which the order of detention was made are not within the scope and object of the Ordinance.

The applicant was arrested on 4 December 1975 in Kuala Lumpur and detained at the Jalan Bandar Police Station until 26 January 1976 when he was served with the detention order made by the Minister under s. 4(1) of the Ordinance, the requisite statement under s. 5(2)(b) of the grounds on which the order was made and the allegations of fact on which the order was based and the relevant forms for making representations against his detention, and then taken to the Detention Camp. A translation of the grounds and allegations of fact which are stated in the national language reads as follows:

"GROUNDS ON WHICH THE DETENTION ORDER IS MADE

That you are an active local 'infra-structure' member of an international drug distribution syndicate. Your activities have not only damaged the international image of Malaysia but have also caused an increase in criminal activities involving violence connected with drugs and you have thereby acted in a manner prejudicial to public order.

ALLEGATIONS OF FACT

1. That you have since the month of October 1975 been an active local 'infra-structure' member of an international drug distribution syndicate.

2. That you have since October 1975 up to the time of your arrest on 4 December 1975 actively assisted members of the syndicate in obtaining a supply of drugs from Kuala Lumpur, Penang and Kedah for smuggling overseas.

The applicant now challenges the validity of the order of detention solely on the contention, as I have stated, that the grounds on which the order was made are dehors the purview and ambit of the Ordinance. The Ordinance is clearly intituled, as I have indicated, the Emergency (Public Order and Prevention of Crime) Ordinance (emphasis mine), and as the preamble has been mooted in support of the contention put forward on behalf of the applicant, it might perhaps be convenient at this stage for ease of reference to set out the pertinent part of the preamble and the provisions of s. 4(1) of the Ordinance:

AND WHEREAS the di-Pertuan Agong is satisfied that immediate action is required for securing public order, the suppression of violence and the prevention of crimes involving violence:

. ...

4(1) It the Minister is satisfied that with a view to preventing any person from acting in any manner prejudicial to public order it is necessary that person should be detained, or that it is necessary for the suppression of violence or the prevention of crimes involving violence that person should be detained, the Minister shall make an order (hereinafter referred to as a 'detention order') directing that person be detained for any period not exceeding two years."

It would appear from the provisions hereinafter set out that the preventive detention provided for in the Ordinance is correlated directly to the apprehended violation by the person detained of the rights of others and indeed of the community at large by disturbing or acting in any manner prejudicial to public order or resorting to violence or crimes involving violence against the background of the existence of a grave emergency.

The Ordinance, it must be remembered, is emergency legislation enacted by the Yang Dipertuan Agung by virtue of the powers vested in him under Article 150(2) of the Federal Constitution as a result of a