As police initiate investigations into Datuk Ambiga Sreenevasan, the former Bar Council president said she was proud to be among those caught in Putrajaya's sedition dragnet.
Ambiga said that the probe into her “may be a good thing” for the future generation, but added that she had yet to receive word from police, and may not even be charged.
“Nevertheless, if I am charged, I know I am in good company and am proud to stand with all the others who are presently facing the odious Sedition Act,” Ambiga told The Malaysian Insider.
The Malaysian Insider reported today that police are now investigating the Negara-Ku patron for sedition following remarks she allegedly made about Biro Tata Negara (BTN) or the National Civics Bureau at a conference in Kuala Lumpur recently.
The Malaysian Insider learnt that a police report was lodged against the lawyer by a Malay group, Persatuan Pertubuan Merah Terengganu, on October 2, after she allegedly claimed BTN camps were nothing more than brainwashing sessions to turn Malays into racists and bigots.
“I think this may turn out to be a good thing after all. Let the truth emerge,” Ambiga told The Malaysian Insider in a text message.
“We all want what is best for our children and we must never be afraid to speak up in defence of our children, the next generation, if there is any instruction that has the effect of narrowing their minds, thus depriving them of the chance of achieving intellectual excellence.”
She said as taxpayers, every Malaysian had a right to question the government’s actions.
“I note with interest that in other cases, similar words may have been used in relation to vernacular schools and no action was taken because the words are not considered seditious.
“This is why it is best to wait and see if in fact there will be a charge,” added Ambiga.
She was apparently referring to Umno deputy division chief Mohamad Azli Mohamed Saad’s call to abolish vernacular schools in the country.
It was reported yesterday that Sepang police chief Mohd Yusoff Awang said Azli’s statement did not contain seditious elements and the case has been classified as a civil matter.
“This was just a suggestion from him, not a public statement,” Yusoff was quoted as saying in a Malaysiakini report.
“Therefore, we won’t open any paper to investigate it.”
Ambiga joins a slew of opposition politicians, academics and activists who have been charged, convicted or are being investigated under the Sedition Act 1948.
Last week, constitutional expert Dr Abdul Aziz Bari was asked to give his statement to police after reports were lodged against him for allegedly insulting the Sultan of Selangor.
Earlier last month, activists Safwan Anang and Adam Adli Abd Halim were sentenced to 10 months and 12 months in prison respectively, for remarks made at a May 13 forum last year calling on the people to take to the streets over the general election results.
Activist Ali Abd Jalil faces three sedition charges for allegedly insulting the Johor royalty and the Selangor Sultan in Facebook postings. Ali, declared a prisoner of conscience by Amnesty International, was released on bail after being detained for more than 20 days.
On September 26, opposition leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim had his statement recorded by police over a report lodged against him in 2011, where he allegedly uttered seditious remarks over his second sodomy case.
On September 20, police recorded a statement from lawyer Edmund Bon, who is being investigated for sedition for saying that non-Muslims are not subject to fatwas or the Shariah courts.
Former Selangor PAS ulama committee member, Wan Ji Wan Hussin, was charged on September 10 with sedition after posting allegedly seditious words on Facebook that belittled the Selangor Sultan’s role as head of Islamic matters in the state.
On September 4, journalist Susan Loone was arrested in Penang over her article based on an interview with state executive council member Phee Boon Poh and the mass arrests of the state’s Voluntary Patrol Unit (PPS) on Merdeka Day.
Universiti Malaya law lecturer Azmi Sharom was charged with sedition on September 2 for his remarks on the 2009 Perak constitutional crisis published in an online news portal.
Other opposition politicians who have been charged with sedition include Pandan MP Rafizi Ramli, Padang Serai MP N. Surendran, Seputeh MP Teresa Kok, Batu MP Chua Tian Chang, Shah Alam MP Khalid Samad and Seri Delima assemblyman R.S.N. Rayer.
A group of United Nations (UN) human rights experts have urged Malaysia to withdraw the colonial-era law, noting that it was reportedly used to prevent Malaysians from freely expressing political opinions.
“It is time for Malaysia to adjust its legislation, including the 1948 Sedition Act, to be in line with international human rights standards, and take firm steps towards the effective enjoyment of the right to freedom of expression,” they said. – October 9, 2014.
- See more at: http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/malaysia/article/if-im-charged-i-know-im-in-good-company-says-ambiga#sthash.8WyJayUF.dpuf
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