This news is a consequence of yesterday's blog (http://d.hatena.ne.jp/itunalily2/20150407). I post it as of 11 April 2015. (Lily)
Union of Catholic Asian News(http://www.ucanews.com)
Malaysia passes draconian Sedition Act amendments
Opposition lawmakers fail to block criticized changes
by Sheridan Mahavera & Elizabeth Zachariah for the Malaysian Insider
10 April 2015
After more than 12 hours of heated debate, the Malay House of Representatives passed amendments to the Sedition Act at 2:30am Friday, three years after prime minister Najib Razak promised to repeal the controversial law.
The amendments, which critics said would make the law more draconian, were passed by a vote of 108 to 79.
All but seven Pakatan Rakyat opposition coalition MPs showed up to block the changes, which among others remove criticism of the government or the administration of justice as something seditious, and make promoting hatred between different religions an offense.
The amendments also do away with fines, with a jail term of between three and seven years, as well as up to 20 years imprisonment for seditious acts or statements that lead to bodily harm and property damage.
There is also no leniency for first time and youthful offenders, who can be automatically slapped with a minimum three-year sentence.
The act now empowers the court to order the removal of seditious material on the Internet.
Opposition MPs had mounted a fierce campaign to stop the changes, saying the law was open to abuse due to the vagueness of the term sedition.
Puchong MP Gobind Singh Deo argued that an important ingredient of any criminal law was that a crime must be specific.
“A crime needs to be specific so that people know that it is a crime and they know that they can be punished if they commit it. Leaving it open allows for abuse,” he said.
Other PR lawmakers failed in their attempt to get Home Minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi to spell out the kinds of speech or acts considered seditious.
“To this moment, the home minister cannot give a specific example of what is considered seditious or how action will be taken, so we can be clear what we should avoid,” said Gombak MP Azmin Ali.
Taiping MP Nga Kor Ming said that under the act, an offender cannot claim lack of intent to cause hostility or ill will as a defense.
The fact that a statement is true, despite the fact that it causes ill will, was also not a defense, said Bagan MP Lim Guan Eng.
Zahid later told reporters that calls for secession could also be considered seditious.
“It is up to the interpretation and definition of the court [whether it is seditious],” he added.
The Internation Commission of Jurists condemned the passage, saying it was a reneging of Najib's promise to repeal the pre-colonial Sedition Act.
Noting that the amendments were part of a series of bills that were rushed through Parliament this week, ICJ's legal adviser Emerlynne Gil said: "It is unfortunate that Prime Minister Najib Razak has chosen to renege on his promise to abolish the Sedition Act and instead went ahead to make the law worse than it already is.
“It is undeniable that these amendments would send a further chilling effect on the freedom of expression in Malaysia that is already restricted.”
Source: The Malaysian Insider
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