A writ against the Human Rights Commission has been suspended by political activist, Khalid al-Wasi, awaiting a declarative statement from Community Affairs and Sports Minister Dale Butler.

Mr. al-Wasi filed a writ against the organisation last week because of its recent decision to means test residents before allowing their concerns to be heard by one of its tribunals.

As former chairman of the education committee of the Commission, Mr. al-Wasi believed the new practice was enabled through a misinterpretation of the Human Rights Act of 1981.

He told The Mid-Ocean News last week that he was shocked that the organisation should attempt to revoke a civil liberty it once publicly championed as a move forward in human rights.

In an interview yesterday, Mr. al-Wasi said he was led to believe the Government was going to change its current position concerning the matter and was awaiting a response from Mr. Butler before taking action.

Until December last year, the Human Rights Commission provided free legal assistance to anyone it believed had cause for complaint and whose cases merited a tribunal hearing.

Mr. al-Wasi said he was outraged to hear the Commission had since asked complainants to submit their bank records for scrutiny to determine if they were eligible to receive aid.

"They might as well take their chances in Supreme Court as opposed to going to the Commission," he said.

He decided to file the writ against the practice as it was contrary to Sections 15 and 18 of the Act.

"Section 15 involves the investigation of complaints. It states in part, that the Commission should offer individuals the opportunity to represent themselves and that, where oral representation is made, such persons may be represented by a barrister and attorney," he said.

Section 18 states that where a matter has been referred to a board of inquiry, assistance may be granted in such instances where the case is "complex or, where it would be unreasonable to assume the playing field was even."

"So I'm asking the Chief Justice for a declaratory interpretation of the use or permitted application, flowing from that Act," he said last week.

He added that this was the essence of his writ ? asking the Chief Justice to look at the wording in the Act, to see if, in fact, it can be interpolated to refer to means testing, to looking at people's financial ability in terms of supplying aid for participants requiring a lawyer.

Mr. al-Wasi said he had talked to numerous lawyers who all felt he had a strong case.

Mr. Butler said yesterday that he could not yet comment on the matter as it was still being dealt with in Chambers in the Supreme Court and a decision would be made in due course.