No plans to abolish Sedition Act just yet, says Ramkarpal
The law’s critics say it is too broadly worded and used to stifle dialogue and silence critical voices.
(FMT) – Deputy law and institutional reforms minister Ramkarpal Singh says the government has no plans to abolish the Sedition Act at the moment.
“Not at this point in time,” he said on BFM’s The Breakfast Grille this morning. “We’ve not excluded the possibility, but it’s something that is perhaps further down the pipeline.”
In its manifesto for last year’s general election, Pakatan Harapan said it would review and repeal draconian provisions of Acts that can be abused to restrict free speech such as the Sedition Act, the Communications and Multimedia Act, and the Printing Presses and Publications Act.
The Sedition Act’s critics say it is too broadly worded and used to stifle dialogue and silence critical voices.
Meanwhile in a written parliamentary reply today, home minister Saifuddin Nasution Ismail said 255 suspects were investigated under the Sedition Act between 2020 and 2022 – with only four cases charged in court.
Touching on the controversial Security Offences (Special Measures) Act (Sosma), Ramkarpal said discussions are under way with the police, NGOs and lawyers as to how the law can be finetuned.
“We have many more engagement rounds to go, and I hope we can complete them in the next few months and come up with recommendations on how the law can be improved,” he said.
“I was in practice before as a criminal lawyer, and I’ve done Sosma cases where I’ve seen the weaknesses (in Sosma). I think it’s important to discuss this with all stakeholders, even those who are pro-Sosma, to find solutions.”
PH promised to repeal draconian provisions under Sosma, which provides the authorities with broad powers against subversion, threats to public order, and acts of terrorism, sabotage and espionage, in its 2018 election manifesto.
Sosma’s critics have pointed out that a police officer may arrest and detain an individual without a warrant if they believe the person to be involved in security offences.
Police are also allowed to detain a person suspected of being involved in acts of terrorism for a period not exceeding 28 days for investigation without a court order.
