Malaysian opposition leader faces sedition probe
|
|
|
KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia (AP) -- Police investigated an opposition party chief Friday after the prime minister accused him of sedition and insulting one of Malaysia's state sultans.
Karpal Singh, chairman of the Democratic Action Party, sparked an uproar when he claimed earlier this week that Sultan Azlan Shah, the titular head of northern Perak state, acted beyond his authority by interfering with the firing of a religious official.
Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi said late Thursday police should investigate Karpal for making comments that upset many people and were "seditious and insulting" to the sultan.
Karpal, a prominent lawyer and member of Parliament, denied being disrespectful to Azlan and insisted he would not retract his remarks.
"I stand by what I have said," Karpal told The Associated Press. "What I've said is purely a legal matter."
Karpal claims Azlan had no right to recently reinstate a state religious department chief who was fired by an opposition alliance that wrested control of Perak and four other states in March general elections.
Malaysia's royalty consists of nine hereditary state sultans who perform ceremonial duties including appointing state chief ministers.
Several ruling party officials lodged police complaints over Karpal's statement, which they claimed was seditious because it could stir contempt toward the royalty. Sedition is punishable by up to three years in prison in Malaysia.
"Karpal Singh has been rude to (the sultan). He intends to create a problem for citizens," said Hafizah Abu Bakar, a spokeswoman for Abdullah's United Malays National Organization party.
Ahmad Sofian Yassin, the police chief of the district where the party's complaint was filed, said authorities were investigating the matter, but it was too early to tell whether Karpal would be charged.
Opposition activists have long called for Malaysia's sedition laws to be abolished, claiming the government uses them to suppress dissent.
Earlier this week, a well-known blogger, Raja Petra Raja Kamaruddin was charged with sedition for writing an article that implied the deputy prime minister was involved in a high-profile murder. He was freed on bail Friday after three days in police custody.
Karpal's sultan comments, Opposition's hot potato
KUALA LUMPUR, May 9 — In more than 30 years of politics, Karpal Singh, the veteran DAP chairman and Bukit Gelugor MP, has made stridency and sharpness of his legal knowledge a trademark of his political battles.
But his comments this week about the Perak Sultan, which some say is an insult to Malaysia’s revered royalty but others call a valid point, is forcing DAP’s partners to deal with something they would rather not handle as they try to forge a coalition solid enough to take power.
Crucially, Umno will take advantage and attempt to use the issue to drive a wedge between the secular DAP and its fundamentalist partners in Pakatan Rakyat.
And even now that Umno has instigated a police investigation against him for sedition, Karpal Singh is standing his ground.
To every reporter who has asked for his comment, his one-liner has been “I stand by what I have said and it is purely a legal matter.”
He has also repeatedly pointed out that what he said was that “the sultan has no jurisdiction when it comes to the state’s administration.”
The controversy stemmed from Perak Menteri Besar Nizar Jamaluddin’s attempt to remove Datuk Jamry Sury, an Umno supporter, from his position as Perak Religious Department director. The sultan stepped in to prevent the transfer, and ordered the Umno man’s reinstatement.
As far as Umno is concerned, when Karpal Singh questioned the sultan’s powers he was questioning Malay rights.
Umno appears to be exploiting the issue to not just cause a split among their rivals, but to actually try to unite Malays behind the party.
Some in PAS seem to agree with Umno’s position that Karpal Singh had insulted the sultan.
“We will not compromise when it comes to the special position of the Malays or the sultans,” a PAS official said, adding that the Islamic party had been put in a difficult position because it did not want be seen to be in confrontation with the Malay rulers.
Many in the Islamic party also find it hard to back Karpal Singh, as they still remember his famous line years ago in which he said “over my dead body an Islamic state will be formed.”
So far the DAP leadership is taking a cautious approach on the issue, mindful of the fact that racial sensitivities are being stoked.
“What should be remembered is that Umno members in Terengganu supporting Datuk Idris Jusoh carried banners which were far more insulting of the sultan. So why the double standard?” a senior DAP official told The Malaysian Insider.
The PKR has also stayed out of the controversy, choosing not to fall into any quagmire, as Anwar Ibrahim, its de facto leader, works towards building a partnership between the mainly Chinese DAP and the mainly fundamentalist PAS.
Until now, the controversy has been purely political. There are no clear signs yet of how the Malay grassroots will respond.
A letter in The Star newspaper from a Malay reader may give some pointers as to where some Malays stand on the issue.
The writer, Mohamed Nooraini from Ampang, defended Karpal Singh in his letter.
“The issue raised by Karpal Singh is about the transfer of a state officer attached to the Jabatan Ugama Perak...Karpal raised the legal aspect of the sultan’s action. He did not question the right of the sultan per se as provided in the Constitution.”
Over the next few days, it will become clearer if more agree or disagree with Mohamed.
No comments:
Post a Comment