Liberty, sedition and jailed dissidents
The recent arrests of opposition figures over charges of sedition should be seen in the context of opposition members crossing a ‘red line’ set by authorities.
Nile Bowie, FMT
The recent arrests of student activist Adam Adli, three other prominent opposition figures, and 18 people holding a peaceful candlelight vigil outside the Jinjang Police Detention Centre have understandably fuelled negative sentiments.
Regardless of where we stand on the political spectrum, we all expect the space to voice our opinions and express dissent within a democratic framework.
Personally, I do not agree with the authorities decision to arrest Adli and others, if anything, it only legitimises the accusations of Barisan Nasional’s opponents. At the same time, one must attempt to view this situation through the lenses of the government.
Whether we’d like to admit it or not, the authorities have been extremely soft on public gatherings, candlelight vigils, and opposition rallies held after the May 5 election. Rallies were met with no resistance; few if any security personnel were in attendance, and attendees were not infringed upon or prevented from exercising their freedom of expression.
As far as I am aware, the police did not exercise force upon any rally-goer, nor did authorities block access to print or digital media that is favourable to the opposition prior to the recent arrests of Adli and others.
By international standards, the response of the state has been extremely liberal. In countries such as Australia, the United States, and within the European Union, public displays of dissent are more often than not met with police batons and ‘less-lethal’ munitions such as rubber bullets. (Malaysia does not use the latter.)
In the regional context, the crowd dispersal protocols in neighbouring countries are significantly more heavy-handed than practices in Malaysia. When Thailand faced significant political unrest in 2010 over challenges to the rule of former PM Abhisit Vejjajiva, the government authorised the use of live ammunition and ordered curfews for several days; popular areas of Bangkok looked like war-zones, the domestic economy nearly ground to a halt, and handfuls of civilian causalities were incurred.
The recent arrests of opposition figures over charges of sedition should be seen in the context of opposition members crossing a ‘red line’ set by authorities.
After successive rallies and continued momentum from those members of the opposition, calls to march to Putrajaya and overthrow the Barisan Nasional ‘by force’ were seen by authorities as the moment when these figures began abusing the softness granted by the authorities.
Read more at: https://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/category/opinion/2013/05/29/liberty-sedition-and-jailed-dissidents/
