Changes to Sedition Act not welcome: Zahid
Published on: Sunday, September 21, 2014
ALOR STAR: Umno vice-president Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi said privileges accorded to the Malays had been entrenched in the Federal Constitution and any attempt to change the status or privileges would not be tolerated."Many segments of society are now saying that the Sedition Act of 1948 should be repealed and replaced with the Harmony Act. This is simply not acceptable. There is a social contract to protect our rights and any attempt to change that is not accepted."We want to protect the rights of everyone. It does not constitute racism to want to protect something that has already been entrenched in the constitution. UMNO is not racist. We are just brave enough to protect as stipulated in the constitution.
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"We respect other religions, we are a multi-cultural and multi ethnic country and we should continue to live in peace and tolerance as we have in the past but we will not accept anyone putting us down," he said at the Kuala Kedah Umno division delegates meeting here.On Thursday, Universiti Malaya law lecturer Associate Prof Dr Azmi Sharom sought to challenge the constitutionality of the Sedition Act 1948.Dr Azmi, 45, has applied for an order that the Sessions Court refer his sedition case to the High Court for its determination over the constitutionality of Section 4(1) of the Sedition Act 1948.He is also seeking an order to stay his case, pending disposal of the application, and his charges to be struck out. His lawyer Gobind Singh Deo said the Sessions Court has the power to transmit the matter to the High Court for its determination of the matters raised under Section 30 of the Courts of Judicature Act 1964.
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On the grounds to support the application, Gobind, who was accompanied by Dr Azmi and his lead counsel Malik Imtiaz Sarwar, said the Sedition Act was not enacted by Parliament."The Sedition Ordinance was enacted in 1948, prior to independence. It was thereafter revised through a Law Revision Commission and gazetted as law.
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"It was not passed through Parliament and therefore it cannot restrict the rights of Dr Azmi to freedom of speech guaranteed under Article 10 (2) of the Federal Constitution. It is therefore unconstitutional," he said.Dr Azmi had on Sept 2 claimed trial at a Sessions Court here to a charge of making allegedly seditious comments on an online portal concerning the 2009 Perak crisis. Dr Azmi, one of The Star columnists featured in the newspaper's Brave Views, Bold Ideas campaign on moderation, was charged under Section 4(1)(b) and Section 4(1)(c) of the Act.An online English portal had published his comments in an article titled, "Take Perak crisis route for speedy end to Selangor impasse, Perak told" on Aug 14.The lecturer, who was released on a bail of RM5,000, was alleged to have uttered seditious words when he went to give a statement at the Kuala Lumpur police crime investigation department at about 12.30pm on Aug 15. He faced an alternative charge of publishing the words at the same time and place.If convicted, under either the principal charge or alternative charge, Dr Azmi is liable to be fined up to a maximum of RM5,000 or a jail term of not more than three years, or both.Speaking to reporters Gobind, among others, stressed that they also stated that Article 10 (2) expressly stated that only Parliament may by law impose restrictions on the rights conferred under Article 10, which they contended guarantees freedom of speech.He said he had filed a certificate of urgency to expedite the hearing of the application filed at the Sessions Court registry Wednesday."I hope the Attorney-General supports our application for the matter to be referred to the High Court for determination of the constitutional issues raised."We also hope that the Attorney-General will consider staying all prosecutions in sedition cases pending determination of this matter which will affect all cases against the persons charged for sedition," he said.He said they hoped to get an early date by next week for the hearing proper as it has yet to be decided over the constitutionality of the Act upon hearing of its merits.Stay up-to-date by following Daily Express’s Telegram channel.
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