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POLITICS-MALAYSIA: Security Law Against Dissent – Protests Rise

Baradan Kuppusamy

KUALA LUMPUR, Sep 15 2008 (IPS) - Under relentless opposition since losing massively at the March general elections, the government of Prime Minister Abdullah Badawi has resorted to invoking a draconian security law to check political dissent.

In a sudden crackdown on Sep.12 authorities arrested prominent blogger Raja Petra Kamaruddin, who runs the hugely popular Malaysia Today political website, and the outspoken opposition lawmaker Teresa Kok, under the dreaded Internal Security Act (ISA) which allows for indefnite detention without trial.

As part of the blitz three newspapers were issued with notices that could potentially see them suspended or banned altogether. A young journalist with a Chinese daily who reported the allegedly racist speech of a Malay leader was also arrested, but released 16 hours later.

The popular ‘The Sun’ English daily, the Chinese language ‘Sin Chew Daily’ and ‘Berita Keadilan,’ the official organ of iconic opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim’s Keadilan party, have been asked to say why they should not be punished for various offences – most of them spurious, according to human rights lawyers.

The crackdown comes as Anwar struggles to induce the defection of over 30 to 40 government backbenchers and topple the government. He constantly claims to have the required numbers.

Anwar has 82 members in the 222-seat chamber and needs 30 more to form a simple majority government, although how he is going to effect that is anybody’s guess. There is no precedent and the government appears prepared to take tough measures to keep itself safe.

‘’The crackdown is a signal that a new era of intolerance and threat has started. They intend to curb media freedom, political freedom and signal all Malaysians that more tough action is ahead,’’ Bar Council vice-chairman, Ragu Kesavan, told IPS.

The bar, which represents over 13,000 lawyers, is calling an urgent emergency meeting on Sep. 20 to plan how to head off the crackdown and threats from the government.

The ISA law – which the authorities defend as necessary to keep the peace in a multi-racial society – was originally enacted in 1948 by the British colonial government for use against a communist threat.

Since the 1960s Malaysia has widened the use of ISA to detain politicians, religious extremists, activists, currency forgers and even passport forgers.

So far, the arrests of Kamaruddin and Kok have sparked a huge storm of protest with even cabinet ministers joining in to voice anger at the use of the ISA against legitimate political dissent.

Several cabinet ministers broke ranks to speak out, forcing the government to release the reporter and allow lawyers and family members to visit Kamaruddin and Kok at their detention cells.

Cabinet minister Zaid Ibrahim, who resigned on Monday after failing to dissuade the government from making the arrests, had led the criticism from within the government ranks.

Speaking to reporters, Zaid said the ISA was ‘’open to abuse’’ and that ‘’if we cannot be fair in implementing it, then we should confine its use to terrorists.’’

The government has defended the arrests saying police had carried out a major intelligence survey and found that there is a need to arrest both critics to ensure race and religious differences did not get out of hand.

Allied with Anwar, Kamaruddin has been a fierce critic of the government with traffic to his website exceeding one million hits on an average when he was arrested.

The government has already charged him with sedition and defamation in the past months.

Critics say the real reason for arresting Kamaruddin is to protect Abdullah’s position as prime minister now that he is under severe attack from within his ruling United Malay National Organisation (UMNO) and from outside by Anwar.

Opposition lawmaker Kok, a senior member of the Democratic Action Party (DAP) that supports the interests of ethnic Chinese and is allied to the Anwar-led Pakatan Rakyat opposition coalition, was formally arrested over unproven claims that she led a non-Muslim complaint about the ‘’loud sound’’ of morning prayers over loudspeakers at a mosque.

She vehemently denied the accusation and threatened legal action when she was arrested.

Abdullah, who has promised to leave by June 2010, is however facing mounting pressure from UMNO to leave by December so that a new man can take over and win back lost support.

Abdullah’s woes were compounded after the 83-year-old former prime minister Dr. Mahathir Mohamad, a fierce critic of Abdullah, announced his decision to return to the political stage.

Protest is building up across the country with ordinary people, NGOs and politicians protesting the crackdown by organising candle-light vigils and protest meetings to whip up opposition against use of the ISA.

Even the church has expressed its concern at the sudden crackdown and has urged the government to allow legitimate dissent. It has also launched prayer meetings for ISA detainees.