Aisyah`s detention period will be extended since the Malaysian authority is yet to collect sufficient evidence to be presented to the prosecutors.Jakarta (ANTARA News) - The detention of Siti Aisyah, who was named a suspect in the murder of a North Korean named Kim Jong Nam in Malaysia, will be extended, an official stated here on Wednesday.
"Today is the seventh day that SA (Siti Aisyah) is being detained for investigation. It is ascertained that the investigator would file a request to the Federal Court to extend the detention. It might be an extension of 3x24 hours," Director of Indonesian Citizens Protection of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Muhammad Iqbal noted here on Wednesday.
Aisyahs detention period will be extended since the Malaysian authority is yet to collect sufficient evidence to be presented to the prosecutors, Iqbal revealed.
"Our lawyers are keeping the lines of communication open with the investigators of Sepang Police," Iqbal said, adding that the lawyers, being tasked by the Indonesian Embassy, are being provided every detail and update on the developments in the investigation.
The provisional detention will be for a period of 14 days, he noted.
On Friday, Aisyah and the other suspects were part of a crime scene reconstruction at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport.
The Malaysian authority has detained the fourth suspect, a North Korean citizen, in connection with the murder of the estranged half-brother of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un.
Aisyah, a second woman traveling on a Vietnamese passport, and a boyfriend of one of them have been arrested on suspicion of involvement in the death of Jong Nam.
The Malaysian authorities revealed on Tuesday that they had yet to determine the cause of death in the killing of the North Korean leaders half-brother and had still to confirm the identity, as no next of kin has come forward.
Malaysias deputy prime minister had earlier identified the victim as Jong Nam, though formal identification of the corpse has yet to take place.
"The cause of death and identity are yet to be ascertained," Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah, the director general of health at the Malaysian health ministry, informed reporters as quoted by Reuters.
South Korean and US officials have said they believe North Korean agents assassinated Jong Nam, who had been living in the Chinese territory of Macau under Beijings protection.
Earlier this week, Minister of Foreign Affairs Retno Marsudi had met her Vietnamese and Malaysian counterparts, Panh Binh Minh and Anifah during the ASEAN AMM Retreat in Boracay, the Philippines, to discuss the alleged involvement of an Indonesian and a Vietnamese citizen in the murder of a North Korean in Malaysia.
Based on the Malaysian law, if the investigation process is still underway, no one apart from the investigators is granted permission to meet the arrested suspects.
Speaking in connection with the matter, Marsudi reaffirmed Indonesias request to Malaysia to grant consular access for the Indonesian citizen. She reminded that consular access should be granted based on the Vienna Convention.
Although the staffers of the Indonesian Embassy in Kuala Lumpur and the Indonesian lawyers have met the investigators and have obtained information that the Indonesian suspect is in good health, yet the consular access is still pending.
Marsudi pointed out that the granting of consular access could assist and facilitate communication between the investigators and the Indonesian suspect.
The same request was also put forth by the Vietnamese foreign minister who stressed that granting consular access is the basic right of a foreigner being detained in another country.(*)
Editor: Heru Purwanto
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