The world breaks everyone, and afterward, some are strong at the broken places.
— Ernest Hemingway, American journalist and novelist
The movement control order (MCO) triggered and necessitated by the Prevention and Control of Infectious Diseases (Measures Within Infected Local Areas) Regulations 2020 [P.U. (A) 87/2020] seems to be effective thus far especially when it underscores prevention and control without a squeak about eradication.
This is almost akin to the absence of the mention of the 18-Point Agreement of the Cobbold Commission in the Constitution of Sarawak or the Federal Constitution. Face masks, rubber gloves, practising smart hygiene, social distancing and other measures aimed at prevention and control should take centre stage while eradication is an inchoate promise.
Be that as it may, we have had our share of alleged violations and breaches which have resulted in violators being hauled up to court to face the music and magic of punishment finetuned as fines or jail terms. Retributive not restorative justice so far aimed at overcrowding the prisons and fattening the national coffers.
The high and mighty pay the fine, which they can easily afford thanks to their fat salaries and perks with a nicely added sentimental apology to the court well reported in the media, while the poor and needy beg the court for mercy which does not really rain easily because of the strictures of the written law that do not bend easily for some classes of the rakyat.
The incidents involving some high and mighty persons became public when viral videos and pictures showcased their lunch tryst with other persons acquainted or associated with them. This was nothing but a social gathering that is frowned upon, if not outlawed, by the law and the MCO.
Then there are those who were charged in court for making trips outside their homes to buy food and necessities which obviously did not impress some judges waiting to judge in favour of the prosecution because they, allegedly, disobeyed, breached and violated the law.
Section 3(1) of the law describes and outlines the exceptions to making journeys to include the performance of any official duty; purchasing, supplying and delivering of food and daily necessities; seeking healthcare or medical services; special purposes as permitted by the director general of the Ministry of Health; and visiting the 22 essential services listed in the Schedule which does not include the courts.
But what qualifies as official duty? What if rubber gloves and face masks are donned while practising social distancing, for instance, when a lawyer going to his office to meet a client needing urgent legal assistance and support; a dentist going to his clinic to await his appointments; a CEO sitting in his or her office to handle staff layoffs; a social club selling takeaway food, or a politician officiating in a closed-door session with his ministry while observing the prevention and control mandates of the Act? Is this acceptable?
Now, imagine a couple of enterprising chaps donning face masks and rubber gloves venturing out of their homes quietly to a nearby lake, pond or river to catch fish for food. Is this an essential service in that it is supplying food, or a special purpose, or a social gathering?
This is the quandary our magistrates are facing in reading and sticking to the letter of the law. Would their lawyers be able to raise this as a defence? Will the magistrates buy it? Or, would they want their pound of flesh in jail, or the fine in terms of ringgits during these economic strangulation times by an unseen alien?
Drawing the line between outlawry and misreading of the law must be based on a purely economic concern not a political or legal one. How does the wage earner in Malaysia during this pandemic make ends meet?
John Steinbeck’s captures the mood in his seminal book, Of Mice and Men published in 1937, which tells the story two displaced migrant ranch workers, who move from place to place in search of job opportunities during the Great Depression when things got very desperate.
The MCO ought to be deemed harsh and unjust if it prevents, controls or discourages rural folk from hunting, trapping, foraging, fishing or farming for their sustenance.
For that matter, how are our longhouses being catered for? Is urban medical assistance reaching them to mete out prevention and control measures? Have they been supplied enough face masks rubber gloves, disinfectants and sanitisers?
If the relevant Act means anything, prevention and control are the key elements until the vaccine is discovered and proven to work. Most assuredly, the government must weigh and balance competing economic interests with compelling health and safety issues during this unwelcome and unexpected pandemic that ordinary folk struggle with.
“There are no great people in the world, only great challenges which ordinary people rise to meet,” said William F Halsey, Jr. We are overcomers.
The views expressed are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the New Sarawak Tribune.
