Pastor Koh’s family seeks to challenge govt appeal against discovery order

2026-03-04 - 09:14

Susanna Liew said the government’s insistence on proceeding with its appeal against the discovery order contradicts home minister Saifuddin Nasution Ismail’s parliamentary reply on Norhayati Arifin’s judicial review. (Bernama pic) PETALING JAYA: The family of Pastor Raymond Koh is seeking to challenge the government’s appeal against a discovery order granting the family access to the classified report on his disappearance. The family wants to bring fresh evidence in the form of a Hansard on Nov 13, 2025 containing home minister Saifuddin Nasution Ismail’s remarks on the report by a task force set up to investigate the disappearances of Koh and activist Amri Che Mat. On Nov 13, Saifuddin said the government had in 2024 withdrawn an appeal against a High Court ruling ordering Putrajaya to release a classified report on Amri’s disappearance to his wife, Norhayati Arifin. He had also said Norhayati should not be denied the right to access the report in her suit against the government. In her affidavit opposing the appeal, Koh’s wife, Susanna Liew, said the government’s insistence on proceeding with its appeal against the discovery order contradicted Saifuddin’s parliamentary reply on Norhayati’s judicial review. The government’s appeal against the discovery order will be heard on April 1. On Sept 24, 2024, the High Court ordered the government to hand over a copy of the report to Liew, as the document was relevant to her lawsuit against the government and police over Koh’s disappearance. The court subsequently held the government liable for the state’s involvement and that one or more of the defendants, both current and former police officers, had acted under orders in Koh’s abduction nine years ago. In Norhayati’s lawsuit, the High Court also found the government and police liable for failing to conduct proper investigations into Amri’s disappearance.