Najib must speed up repeal of Sedition Act - CENBET

Civil society group The Centre for A Better Tomorrow (CENBET) has called on the Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak to speed up the process of repealing the Sedition Act and replacing it with the National Harmony Acts.

“He made this pledge on 11 July 2012. An immediate repeal of the Act would help the Prime Minister stave off claims that he is using the legislation for political means and bolster his image as a reformist leader,” CENBET's co-president Gan Ping Sieu said in a statement today.

The call came following a sedition charge against Seri Delima assemblyman R. S. N. Rayer at the Sessions Court in Penang tomorrow over his ‘celaka Umno’ remark uttered in the state assembly in May.

“While Rayer had crossed the line of decorum as a public figure with his “celaka” remark, we find it baffling why he was hauled up to court to face a maximum jail sentence of three years and a fine of not more than RM5,000. A conviction could make him lose his seat as elected representative.”

Gan also demanded the Attorney-General to explain why the act of criticising a political party fell under criminal offence.

“Rayer had merely criticised Umno as a political party. He may have been crude in his remarks but he did not incite racial hatred or promote ill-will against the Malay rulers. If it is an offence to criticise Umno, would it also be legally wrong for a BN leader to rudely condemn Pakatan Rakyat parties?

Such prosecution would criminalize common conversation among the people in Malaysia and be seen as favouring one political party over the other,” Gan added.

The decision to charge Rayer, he said, may also impede the freedom of speech and expression in the country.

A few opposition lawmakers have been charged under Sedition Act recently.

On May 6, DAP’s Seputeh MP Teresa Kok was charged under the act for a satirical video she was featured in, that was said to have insulted Malays and Muslims, according to complaints by pro-Umno groups.

On August 26, PAS’s Khalid Samad was charged with sedition over a remark he made about the Selangor Islamic Affairs Council (Mais).

The Shah Alam MP had questioned if Mais should be stripped of its executive powers following its refusal to return Bibles confiscated from the Bible Society of Malaysia, even with a directive from the Attorney- General.

On August 19, Padang Serai MP N.Surendran of PKR was also charged with sedition for a statement uttered regarding Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim’s sodomy appeal, alluding it to a ‘political conspiracy’ involving Putrajaya.

The Attorney-General, Gan added, must clearly spell out the terms for using Sedition Act as failure to do so would arouse public suspicion and unnecessarily reinforce the perception that this legislation is used arbitrarily or selectively.

“This does not bode well for good governance – a cause which CENBET is promoting.

The decision to charge Rayer came on the heels of Mingguan Malaysia and Federal Territory Umno Youth questioning why the AG appeared reluctant to charge certain quarters earlier this month.

If the AG cannot provide a satisfactory explanation on why Rayer was charged, he will be seen as succumbing to external pressure in carrying out his constitutional duties.”