The act of arresting, handcuffing and detaining 19-year-old Ong Sing Yee will start a backlash against the authorities.
In the past, Malaysia’s Sedition Act 1948 was used to silence the political adversaries of the ruling administration. Today, Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak’s government has deemed it necessary to curb individuals, NGOs and even teenagers.
This government refuses to understand that it needs to summon the
courage to tackle the necessary and urgent reforms demanded by the
electorate. It should not take the easier option of hounding teenagers
and people who dare criticise.
The act of arresting, handcuffing and detaining 19-year-old Ong Sing Yee
for 15 hours and then interrogating her without the presence of her
lawyer, will start a backlash against the authorities.
Ong’s crime? She had been charged with sedition for stepping on posters
of Najib and his wife, the self-styled First Lady Rosmah Mansor, during
the Janji Demokrasi march on the eve of Merdeka Day at Dataran Merdeka.
If Najib and the police would really like to make an impact, they should
raid people’s homes and arrest, handcuff and detain all those people,
including and especially Malays, who use newspapers with Najib’s
photographs to line their cat litter trays. Some do this with relish, because they claim, this is their own form of silent protest.
Photos of Najib seem to attract all sorts of contempt. Not so long ago.
It is alleged he had to arrest boys for throwing bricks at his pictures on KTM trains.
MP for Puchong, Gobind Singh Deo, had already said that stepping on
photographs of the prime minister and his wife is not sedition. Najib
and his wife are not rulers, nor are they the government. Najib is
merely a government servant.
In May, NGO and social activist Irene Fernandez was charged with
sedition. A Jakarta daily reported that she had claimed Malaysia was
unsafe for migrant workers.
Curbing free speech
In June, the Sedition Act was used by the Johor police to investigate the former Perak mentri besar, Nizar Jamaluddin for his comments on the Sultan of Johore’s purchase of the car registration number plate, WWW1. The number plate had cost the Sultan RM500,000 and Nizar opined that the money could be put to a better use, such as helping the poor.
In June, the Sedition Act was used by the Johor police to investigate the former Perak mentri besar, Nizar Jamaluddin for his comments on the Sultan of Johore’s purchase of the car registration number plate, WWW1. The number plate had cost the Sultan RM500,000 and Nizar opined that the money could be put to a better use, such as helping the poor.
Kosmo, an Utusan publication which printed two cartoons on the controversy, escaped censure.
“Why the double standard in only charging me whereas no action has been taken against Kosmo for the same offence? Is it because Kosmo is an Umno paper whereas I am a Pakatan leader?” asked Nizar.
At the time, Azmi Sharom, a law lecturer at the Universiti Malaya (UM)
also criticised the use of the Sedition Act 1948, to prosecute
individuals.
“The underlying theme is the government is using all these powers to
curb dissent against the government, to curb criticism of the
government.
“What they are doing to Nizar is very clearly to suppress his right to
free speech, his opinion. This is obviously a bad law… It is bad faith
on their part. If they think something is bad, then don’t use it. Get it
fixed first,” said Azmi.
Signs of desperation
It is easy to see what is happening. Najib and members of his Cabinet are clearly showing signs of desperation and fear.
It is easy to see what is happening. Najib and members of his Cabinet are clearly showing signs of desperation and fear.
Najib
and his administration lack original ideas to push through reforms.
They have failed to act on their promises. What happened to the National
Harmony Act which Najib promised last June, to replace the Sedition
Act?
Malaysia now has an opposition which is strongest and the most credible party to take on the BN government.
The opposition coalition has proved to be a viable alternative. It is not perfect
but it shows promise. They won five states in the last election and if
the opposition had been a bit more switched on, they should have
questioned the veracity of the votes. Perhaps, they might have found out
that they had won more states, or even won the election outright.
NGOs, activists and the majority of the rakyat are energised. There is
no further need to tolerate Umno’s lies and empty promises.
Arresting Ong is only a means to intimidate and frighten her, and others
like her. Another student has been expelled from his private college.
This is to make sure his future is bleak. It is like arresting Rafizi
Ramli of the opposition. It is meant to scare the rakyat and to stop
them embarrassing the government. It is to prevent more whistleblowers
from revealing more scandals.
Najib knows how to manipulate social networking
sites. He has used them to improve his image. Is he like Newt Gingrich,
the US presidential contender, who claimed he had 1,000,000 Twitter
followers? Gingrich is alleged to have bought these followers. Had
Najib’s expensive foreign PR media advisers bought his Twitter followers
for him?
Najib should realise that the young have a powerful tool in social
networking sites. It is the medium which brought about Hosni Mubarak’s
downfall in Egypt. It is how activists garner support in oppressed
middle-eastern countries like Bahrain.
Ong’s experience has gone viral in cyberspace. Her treatment differs
from that of Ibrahim Ali and Ridhuan Tee. The message sent out to the
young, whose affections Najib has been anxious to cultivate, is clear.
The Malaysian youth understand that there is one law for Umno and
another for the rakyat. Moreover, the photo of Ong in handcuffs will be
the new symbol of oppression by the administration of Najib.
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