GET CRACKING FAHMI – DAP MP JOINS CIVIL SOCIETY, NGOs IN CALLS TO AMEND MALAYSIA’S DRACONIAN SECTION 233 OF COMMUNICATIONS ACT – ‘THE LAW ALLOWS VOICES TO BE SILENCED BY THOSE IN POWER ONLY BECAUSE THE POSTINGS CAUSE THEM DISCOMFORT DUE TO THEIR POLITICAL INTERESTS’
Politics |
February 16, 2023 8:20 pm by | 0 Comments
DAP MP urges govt to amend Communications and Multimedia Act 1998
Syahredzan Johan said the freedom of expression did not mean the freedom to slander, lie or fire up racial sentiments.
KUALA LUMPUR: Syahredzan Johan (PH-Bangi) has urged the government to amend the Communications and Multimedia Act 1998 to safeguard the people’s freedom of expression.
Syahredzan said Section 233 of the Act, in particular, was so wide that it can and has been abused by those in power.
“I have high hopes that in this Parliament’s lifetime, the unity government will table an amendment to this section,” he said during a debate on the Yang di-Pertuan Agong’s address in Dewan Rakyat.
He said, at times, posting on social media was the only avenue for the people to express their dissatisfaction.
“Unfortunately, the law allows their voices to be silenced by those in power only because their postings cause them discomfort due to their political interests.
“For instance, I find the Liverpool (football team) to be ‘offensive’ in nature, but that doesn’t mean all social media postings on them must be investigated by the police,” he said.
Section 233 criminalises online content that is “obscene, indecent, false, menacing or offensive in character with intent to annoy, abuse, threaten or harass another person”.
The provision provides for a fine of not more than RM50,000 or imprisonment for up to one year, or both. An offender can also be fined another RM1,000 for every day that the offence is continued after conviction.
The DAP MP said a total repeal might not be necessary, but a review and amendment of other provisions could be warranted.
He added that allowing the freedom of expression was not without limits and should not be used to legitimise content that could disturb the peace.
“I’ll repeat myself to make it clear, the freedom of expression is not the freedom to slander, lie or fire up racial sentiments,” he said. FMT
Hasten reform of Section 233 of the Communications and Multimedia Act
The Centre for Independent Journalism (CIJ) is glad that the new government decided not to pursue the case against Heidy Quah.
It was reported yesterday that human rights activist Heidy Quah was to be charged under Section 233 of the Communications and Multimedia Act (CMA).
The government, however, made a sharp U-turn at the last minute and decided not to pursue the case.
This decision, we hope, foretells the government’s commitment in not weaponising repressive laws to silence critics and curtail our freedom of expression and speech. Human rights activists such as Heidy Quah should not have been investigated and intimidated for speaking out and critiquing government action.
The broad scope of Section 233 of the CMA allows it to be widely used against human rights defenders and has become a tool of intimidation and harassment by state apparatus in recent years. Last year alone we documented 114 cases where Section 233 was used to investigate netizens and human rights defenders for various reasons. (See the Freedom of Expression Report 2022.)
The government must always be open to scrutiny and constructive criticism in fulfilling its mandate. In this regard, we call upon Fahmi Fadzil as the new Communications and Digital Minister to hasten reforms with regard to the CMA and other laws which are used to silence critics, specifically human rights defenders.
We need a state that lives up to the hopes of the people for unencumbered freedom of expression and speech, especially when it comes to holding the government accountable. ALIRAN
