Cops may use Sedition Act against online hate-mongers

The Star
by NADIRAH H. RODZI AND CHAN LI LEEN

KUALA LUMPUR: Police are considering using the Sedition Act 1948 against those who incite racial and religious hatred on social media.

It was not an easy task to detain and prosecute those committing such an offence due to the Internet being wide and without borders, said Deputy Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Mohd Bakri Zinin.

Mohd Bakri also refuted claims that the police are practising selective investigation and urged the public not to be quick to jump the gun.

“This is what most people don’t understand, each case is different and has different facts and circumstances.

“We would need to identify the real identities and produce solid evidence before taking action against them.

“Without all that, it is hard to drag them to justice. That is why we are considering using the Sedition Act to investigate these sort of cases,” he said at a press conference after the closing of the Ops Selamat 5/2014 at the Terminal Bersepadu Selatan yesterday.

On Friday, Federal CID director Comm Datuk Seri Mohmad Salleh said the police were going all out to track down those inciting racial and religious hatred.

Police urged the five people identified as online hate-mongers on social media sites to come forward.

The wanted culprits include a woman with the Facebook profile Vignamona VM, who called for religious schools to be disbanded, a man (FB profile Kelvin Yip), who allegedly insulted Islam over the Muslims’ call to prayer (azan), and a man depicted on YouTube kicking another man of a different race.

The other two are a man whose profile name is “Persatuan Kongsi Gelap Melayu”, responsible for posting provocative messages regarding an alleged racial riot in Klang, and Facebook user Mohd Adam Asyiq Balasubramaniam, who posted racial sentiments.

In Ipoh, Perak deputy police chief Deputy Comm A. Paramasivam denied there had been fights between a group of Malays and Indians in Buntong as claimed on Facebook.

“There were no such fights and the Kampung Baru police station was not surrounded by a group of Indians.

“Neither were there fights in front of the Ipoh Railway Station or at the Gerbang Malam,” he said during a press conference yesterday.

DCP Paramasivam said in actual fact, a motorcyclist had died after being knocked down in front of the police station last month.

“A group of devotees attending a festival at a Hindu temple nearby the police station caught wind of what happened and had gone there to see what was happening. There were no racial riots or murder. It was a road accident,” he said.