Don’t meddle, Umno minister tells Washington as Malaysia debates Sedition Act..... A minister has told Washington to stay out of Malaysias debate on the Sedition Act, reminding the superpower not to interfere or question Putrajayas use of the colonial-era law. Umno minister Datuk Abdul Rahman Dahlan said Malaysia was a sovereign nation and should be given the right to decide on the laws necessary to maintain peace in a multiracial country. I remind all parties, including the United States, that our countrys future, security and harmony between the races are not their responsibility. It is ours, so let us bear this burden and responsibility, the minister in charge of housing, urban wellbeing and local government was quoted as saying in Sinar Harian. Leave us to make the decision whether to retain or abolish the Sedition Act, he told the Malay daily. In a statement issued through the US embassy here, Washington yesterday reminded Putrajaya to keep its promise to repeal the act. It said the US government had taken note of Thursdays march by the Malaysian Bar which is calling for a repeal of the act and had sent observers to the protest with other diplomats, it said. “We recognise that the peaceful nature of this protest reflected efforts of the Bar Council and Malaysian authorities. The United States remains concerned with the Malaysian government’s use of sedition laws. We welcomed Prime Minister (Datuk Seri) Najib Razak’s announcement in 2012 of his intention to repeal the Sedition Act and encourage the government to follow through on that commitment,” the statement had said. Putrajaya was urged to apply the rule of law fairly, transparently and apolitically to promote confidence in Malaysia’s democracy, judiciary and economy. The US also said its officials have, and would continue to, raised concerns about the rule of law and human rights with the Malaysian government. But Rahman said the US was in no position to tell Malaysia what to do, as it, too, had its own laws that were draconian, such as the Patriot Act against terrorism. The US has laws that stifle freedom, are drastic and draconian, like the Patriot Act. Therefore, it should not question the Sedition Act, Rahman said. Besides Washington, international jurists from Commonwealth countries, Germany and Korea had also lent support to the Bars peaceful protest, and called on Najib to keep his promise to repeal the Act. The Act defines sedition broadly and does not require proof of seditious intent. Its use against opposition politicians, lawyers and legal professors, activists and Muslim preachers in recent months have led to an outcry that it is being used selectively against the governments critics. Last week, there was an uproar again when Minister in the Prime Ministers Department Nancy Shukri told Parliament that police and the public prosecutor decided not to use the act against Malay right-wing leader Datuk Ibrahim Ali for saying that Malay Bibles should be burnt because he was defending Islam. Supporters of the Sedition Act include Malay groups who say the law protects Islam, the position of Malays, the national language and the monarchy. – October 18, 2014.
Posted on: Sat, 18 Oct 2014 13:07:25 +0000
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