It is time hate speech is criminalised

Yes, it is time that hate speech is criminalised and offenders arrested and charged. For too long Malays and Muslims have had to endure all sorts of hate speech from the non-Malays and non-Muslims.

NO HOLDS BARRED

Raja Petra Kamarudin

Gobind Singh Deo wants to criminalise hate speech, which is good. Basically, hate speech is anything you say or write that attacks a person or group of people. It could be regarding that person’s religion, race, gender, sexual orientation, political affiliation, etc.

Of late, we have seen non-stop attacks on Najib Tun Razak and/or Rosmah Mansor. They call Najib a thief, kleptocrat, pirate, and much more. This hate speech should be criminalised and those people who attack Najib should be arrested and charged. After all, Najib has not been convicted of any crime like Anwar Ibrahim has — three times.

Many Malaysians also attack the Islamic Sharia laws, Hudud included. They call these laws barbaric and say only stupid people would want laws from the middle ages. This triggers hate towards Islam, the Qur’an, Prophet Muhammad, the Sharia, and Hudud. It also insinuates that Muslims, or Muslims who believe in Islamic laws, are extremists and morons.

There are those who attack the Raja-Raja Melayu, which upsets the Malays and Muslims

Then there are people who insist that Malaysia is a secular country and not an Islamic country. This upsets many Muslims who consider Malaysia an Islamic country and regard Islam as the religion of the Federation.

So those who say Malaysia is a secular country (or say Islam can only be implemented over his dead body) should be arrested and charged for this hate speech because what they are saying upsets the Malays and Muslims.

The same goes for the monarchy or Raja-Raja Melayu. Malays and Muslims get upset when the Raja-Raja Melayu are attacked and when those who attack them say that Malaysia should be turned into republic. The rulers are heads of Islam so attacking the rulers mean attacking Islam. Hence this is clearly hate speech.

Umno members are vilified like they are pariahs, which is undoubtedly hate speech

And calling Malays ‘rent-seekers’, can only survive with the NEP ‘crutch’, would still be living in trees if not because of the Chinese, and so on, is undoubtedly hate speech. This suggests that Malays are a useless race that constantly needs to be bribed with what Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad calls ‘dedak’.

Yes, it is time that hate speech is criminalised and offenders arrested and charged. For too long Malays and Muslims have had to endure all sorts of hate speech from the non-Malays and non-Muslims.

Even if you are just an Umno or PAS member is enough to get the non-Malays and non-Muslims to vilify you even if you have done nothing to them. To these non-Malays and non-Muslims, being an Umno or PAS members is lower than being a pariah. And if that is not hate speech then I do not know what is.