'High time government speed up abolishing Sedition Act'

It is high time for the government to speed up the process of replacing the Sedition Act 1948 with the proposed national unity laws.

Kuala Selangor MP, Datuk Irmohizam Ibrahim said this was in light of the numerous racial issues that have cropped up in the country in recent times.

"I think it is high time we introduce the Act in Malaysia.

"For example in Australia, there is the Racial Vilification Act 1996 to prevent a person from inciting hatred, serious insult or mockery, involving religion or race.

"When I look at the Act, it shows that that every person is protected under the constitution and the preventive measures are there," he told Astro AWANI at the Parliament lobby Tuesday.

He said the government had already stated that it would abolish the Sedition Act; the question that remains is when it will be carried out.

Earlier, Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Nancy Shukri said there has been no deadline set to replace the Sedition Act.

She said more discussions were needed to be done before abolishing the current sedition law.

“I am of the view that it is unwise for us to set a deadline for the Sedition Act to be replaced by the National Harmony Act.

“If we put a deadline, this will directly cause unnecessary pressure, which is something we do not want and should not be set when we are searching and try to achieve a perfection which we hope for,” the minister had said.

The National Unity Consultative Council (NUCC) suggested three separate bills to replace the Sedition Act 1948, including one to promote harmony and another prescribing mediation as a means to resolve disputes.

The first bill, dubbed the National Unity Bill, aims to promote mediation as a means to solving any dispute that come under a list of “prohibited grounds”.

The second proposed law, the National Harmony Bill, outlines a list of punishments for conduct that is deemed to be deliberately aimed at instigating or leading to threats or actual acts of physical harm based on racial and religious hatred.

A third bill will deal with the formation of a National Unity and Integration Commission, which will be tasked to promote national unity, integration, equality and non-discrimination, among others.

Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak had pledged to repeal the Sedition Act in July 2012.