Use the right law for the right crime

FMT Reporters

 | September 20, 2014

CIJ says Adam Adli should have been investigated under the Penal Code and not the “vague” Sedition Act.

PETALING JAYA: The Centre for Independent Journalism (CIJ) says Adam Adli should have been investigated under the Penal Code and not the Sedition Act when he called for the toppling of Umno and the Barisan Nasional at a post general election ceramah.

Saying “a more balanced and constitutional approach” would have been to investigate Adam using the Penal Code, Director for CIJ, Jac Kee added, “For such an expression to constitute an offence, it should have required proof that the statement was intended to cause fear or alarm and that it would incite the public to commit violence or other such offences.”

He said the Sedition Act contained “wide-ranging and vague provisions” and was therefore not the right law under which to investigate Adam.

Calling the Act “incredibly broad”, Kee lamented that the Act even covered “legitimate and valid criticism of the government and its policies”.

Further labelling the Sedition Act an “outdated and draconian piece of legislation”, Kee stated the CIJ’s disappointment that the law had been used time and again to silence critics.

He said, “It (Sedition Act) has been consistently used as a political tool to silence the government’s opponents.”

Saying Malaysia could not call itself a genuine democracy if it continued to use the Sedition Act for this purpose, Kee added that Adam’s jail sentence was “disproportionate”.

On behalf of the CIJ, Kee said the body was once again appealing to the Attorney-General to review all current sedition charges, to stop charging those who criticised the government and to uphold freedom of expression as enshrined in the Federal Constitution.

 The Sedition Act should be abolished years ago. It is sad that it is used for 'all purposes' - CURE-ALL for Umno/BN foes. Yet never applied to their own when they say even more seditious things like Mahathir said about the Malays. It is definitely TIME for a change in administration of this country at Federal level.