August 11, 2012
Deputy Higher Education Minister Saifuddin
Abdullah says the amendment to Section 114A of the Evidence Act may
become a threat to the Internet sector.
KUALA
LUMPUR: Deputy Higher Education Minister Saifuddin Abdullah described
today the controversial amendment to Section 114A of the Evidence Act as
a “hiccup” to Prime Minister Najib Razak’s political transformation
programme.
The Umno leader, speaking at a Bar Council forum on the law’s
possible threat to internet freedom, said the law was a setback to
Najib’s democratic reforms as the Act gives wide prosecution powers to
create fear and narrow dissenting space.
Critics of the law claimed the section makes it easy for the
government to charge anyone seen “facilitating” what is deemed as
criminal comments on the internet even if the comments were made by
someone else.
Those supporting the Act argued that the law gives space for the
accused to prove innocence although they admit that it does not solve
the problem of hacking or fraudulence where criminal comments may be
posted by hackers under fake accounts.
“I am a supporter to the prime minister’s transformation programme..I
support democratic reforms so I (as a layperson) don’t need this,” he
said.
The Malaysian government under the Mahathir administration, in an
effort to promote the country’s internet communication technology
market, vowed to leave internet free as it aims to draw investments into
a sector that makes up 4.1% of GDP.
Liability
Saifuddin said the amendment may become a threat to the sector.
Najib said recently that he would continue his predecessor’s legacy
by guaranteeing online freedom together with the announcement of a raft
of political reforms including the plan to repeal the Sedition Act.
“Its a hiccup. As a layperson I find it hard to explain to the people
that this (law) may not lead to internet censorship,” Saifuddin
commented.
K Shanmuga, a prominent lawyer and legal activist, speaking at the
forum said since the Sedition Act provides arbitrary power to label
anything as seditious, the law with the existence of the new internet
law would make users indiscriminately liable to the Sedition Act as long
as its not repealed.
Burden of proof
But Faizal Moideen, another lawyer speaking at the forum, said he
agreed that the new law gives wide prosecution powers said not all is
bad about Section 114A. He described the opposition towards the
amendment as “alarmist”.
“It does not create the presumption of guilt,” he said, adding that
the prosecution will have to first prove the accused of wrongdoing
although other panelists, including Saifuddin, disagreed, saying that
the process itself is already creating problems for internet users.
The amendment was passed by the Dewan Rakyat and Dewan Negara in
April this year amid accusations that it was bulldozed through along
with other reform laws without proper debate on its repercussions.
Section 114A — otherwise known as Evidence (Amendment) (No 2) Act
2012 — was gazetted on July 31 by de facto law minister Mohamed Nazri
Abdul Aziz.
Rights activists like the Centre for Independent Journalism Malaysia
(CIJ) is now calling upon Internet users to take part in an Internet
Blackout Day on August 14 to create awareness among Internet users about
the negative impact of an amendment on online expression.
The government dismissed accusations that it was trying to use a
backdoor to censor the internet. Saifuddin, together with Umno Youth
chief Khairy Jamaluddin, one of the few progressive leaders within the
ruling coalition have called on the Najib administration for a review of
the law.
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