The Sedition Act must die, Pakatan
SEPTEMBER 18 — What is alarming about the Pakatan government is the short memory of its politicians.
Too many have forgotten the fear and panic caused by middle-of-the-night arrests by the previous government.
The Sedition Act should have been abolished a long time ago. It serves no purpose when existing laws on libel and slander exist.
We cannot be arresting people for being stupid on social media; because believe me, if we truly had enough police to do that the jails would all be full.
Inciting violence, plotting to perpetrate violence, performing actual violence — those should be taken seriously.
Someone mouthing off things on the Internet that the average Malaysian uncle probably says too loudly at the kopitiam is not cause to marshal the police.
The problem is Pakatan’s government is discovering just why Barisan Nasional employed many questionable tools and methods — because they made things easy.
Why deal with dissent when you can quash it? Why try to make peace or create dialogue when you can just ban public discourse?
It will not be an easy road to getting rid of the Sedition Act, and it will be far harder to dismantle the mentality among Malaysians that believes it needs to exist.
Changing government wasn’t easy; and yet Malaysians tried. If they could persevere, then so should Pakatan about the Sedition Act.
Good things are worth the effort even if at the moment, we need to yell a lot at the government to remind them just what good things are.
* This is the personal opinion of the columnist.
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