Use of Sedition Act needed in cases involving royalty: Malaysia PM Anwar
SELANGOR: Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim on Tuesday (Jul 18) said that the Sedition Act is needed in cases involving comments against the royal institution.
His comments came after caretaker Kedah chief minister Muhammad Sanusi Md Nor was charged with two counts of sedition earlier that day under Section 4(1)(a) of the Sedition Act for allegedly insulting Selangor ruler Sultan Sharafuddin Idris Shah.
“Yes, fundamentally, we avoid the use of the Sedition Act.
“However, when it comes to matters concerning the … position and dignity of the rulers, … this is something we should uphold,” Mr Anwar was quoted as saying by Free Malaysia Today after officiating a programme in Sekinchan, Selangor.
He also stressed that the Sedition Act would not be used if it involved criticisms against him in his role as the prime minister, according to Malay daily Utusan Malaysia.
"As for criticisms against the prime minister, I have never used it as an excuse (to use the Sedition Act)," he reportedly said.
Mr Anwar added that all parties must respect the court process.
"The police are investigating, the attorney-general is also prosecuting, so I don't want to interfere with the process,” he was quoted as saying by Utusan Malaysia.
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Earlier on Tuesday, Sanusi pleaded not guilty to the two charges against him. The charge carries a maximum sentence of three years in jail or a fine of RM5,000 (US$1,100). He was granted bail of RM5,000 for each charge.
The first charge was in relation to him making seditious remarks against the Selangor ruler while the second charge was related to uttering seditious words regarding the establishment of the unity government led by Mr Anwar.
Both the alleged utterances were said during a political rally in Selangor on Jul 11.
In a press conference after he was charged, Sanusi claimed that the charges against him were meant to hurt his chances at the upcoming state polls and were an attempt at silencing the opposition.
Human rights group Lawyers for Liberty (LFL) condemned the use of the Sedition Act against Sanusi, claiming that no legitimate government should be allowed to wield the powers given by the Act
“It is appalling that this has happened under a government led by Pakatan Harapan, which in opposition long condemned the existence and usage of the Sedition Act as oppressive and an affront to freedom of speech,” LFL said in a statement, according to the Malay Mail.
On Monday, Minister in the Prime Minister's Department (Law and Institutional Reform) Azalina Othman Said said that the government will hold discussions with relevant parties on Jul 21 to assess existing laws and look into the need for a new law to deal with issues involving race, religion, royalty - also known as the 3R.
"We will study or make an assessment (on) existing laws (such as the Communications and Multimedia Act 1998 and the Sedition Act 1948).
"We will discuss whether they are sufficient (to deal with the 3R issue) or otherwise because currently, offences involving 3R issues are investigated under a law that is more geared towards elements of criminal offence,” she was quoted as saying by Bernama.
Last Thursday, Ms Azalina said that the current law causes prosecution to take a long time to complete due to the legal procedures involved.
She added that the proposal to create the new law to impose civil penalties on those who play up sentiments regarding the 3R issues had been presented to the Cabinet the day before and had received a positive response.
Meanwhile, Mr Anwar warned all parties last Tuesday to not exploit issues touching on the 3R ahead of the upcoming state elections, adding that the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) and the Royal Malaysia Police are monitoring the situation.
Communications and Digital Minister Fahmi Fadzil was quoted as saying by The Star last Thursday that MCMC and the police will assess the need to form a special unit to look into cases relating to the 3R issues.
Six states – Kelantan, Terengganu, Kedah, Penang, Selangor and Negeri Sembilan – will be holding their state polls concurrently on Aug 12.
The by-election for the Kuala Terengganu parliamentary seat will also be held on Aug 12, said Election Commission chairman Abdul Ghani Salleh on Tuesday, according to Bernama.
