KUALA LUMPUR – Graphic artist and activist Fahmi Reza has issued a letter of demand to senior government authorities after being barred from travelling abroad despite no formal travel restriction being in place.
The letter, dated June 13 and made public on Fahmi’s social media platforms, was addressed to Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Razarudin Husain, Immigration Department director-general Datuk Zakaria Shaaban, and Home Minister Datuk Seri Saifuddin Nasution Ismail.
According to FMT, Fahmi’s lawyer, Yohendra Nadarajan, said his client was stopped by immigration officers at Kuala Lumpur International Airport Terminal 2 on June 7 while attempting to board a flight to Singapore. Airport officials reportedly instructed him to refer the matter to Bukit Aman.
The following day, Razarudin clarified that there was no travel ban imposed on Fahmi but confirmed that his name had been listed under an “internal movement monitoring list for investigation purposes”.
Yohendra, however, argued that there was no legal basis for Fahmi’s inclusion on such a list. He added that during a passport renewal in 2022, Fahmi had been informed that his name had already been removed from any monitoring database.
He also pointed out inconsistencies on the Immigration Department’s travel status portal, where the Bahasa Melayu version indicated that Fahmi was restricted from travel, while the English version stated otherwise.
The department has since acknowledged the discrepancy and confirmed that a technical review is underway.
“No authority has taken responsibility for the violation of our client’s rights on June 7,” said Yohendra, adding that Fahmi is demanding his name be removed from all monitoring systems, all restrictions lifted, and compensation – the amount of which will be determined.
“If no response is received within seven days from the date of this letter, we will assume the authorities have chosen to maintain our client’s name on the listing and a travel restriction is still in effect,” he was quoted as saying.
Meanwhile, the Immigration Department yesterday stated that Fahmi is not barred from leaving the country.
Zakaria said the confusion stemmed from differing displays on the department’s travel status portal. “There is no restriction on the individual to travel abroad. However, the entry ban into Sabah remains in effect as per instructions from the state authorities,” he said in a statement.
He added that the English version of the portal had shown outdated information as it was undergoing updates, leading to the apparent contradiction. “The English portal has been temporarily disabled to facilitate this process,” he said.
Zakaria said a technical audit is being conducted internally to ensure information consistency across all language versions of the website to avoid further confusion.
Fahmi previously said he learned of the travel block from an immigration officer at KLIA, who cited a blacklisting related to his entry into Sabah. – June 14, 2025