Wednesday, May 7, 2008

Raja Petra Update

Free Raja Petra

"I am happy. We bloggers have declared war on the government. We are not scared of the government. The government should be scared of us".

Raja Petra,

As I stepped out of my home on the morning of the 9th of March, it felt like I had been holding my breath for a lifetime and there I was, suddenly, drawing breath. Perhaps it was the adrenaline, still surging through my veins, the few hours of sleep unable to extinguish the exultation of victory.

And it had been a victory.

It was not just about the fact that the Barisan had been given the trouncing it rightfully deserved. It was also, perhaps more importantly so, about the many personal stories, the sacrifices, of those who had helped change the course of destiny in their own ways, big and small.

We had been involved in a war without even knowing it. Two wars. The first, a war on democracy waged by those who saw only the value of their own empire, to whom the language of democracy was merely a useful means by which to distract from the glint of the weapons as they came hurtling down at us. The arbitrary detentions, the brutality, the perversion of justice, the muzzling of free expression and the subversion of the institutions of states kept us in a constant state of shock that left us blind to all that was being taken from us.

There were visionaries however, those who were our compass stars. They showed us, in their own ways, the true north. They showed us that for us to reclaim democracy, we had to go to war for it. They showed us the way into that war, that second war, the war for democracy.

I saw it as thousands marched for free and fair elections. I saw it as thousands marched against marginalisation. I saw it as thousands marched for justice. I saw it as people stood up in defiance, stood up to be counted. I saw it as people said "No More!".

And I saw it in the campaigns of truth that spread across the blogs.

Raja Petra, like Haris Ibrahim, and many others, were, are, visionaries who have continued to show us the way through courage and tenacity. These patriots, standing up in defence of their motherland, are the mirrors in which we see ourselves and all that we stand for, all that we should be.

March 8th was a decisive victory for all of us. But it was not the only one that we need. We may have won the battle, but it is the war we want to win. Let the deeds of those who have paved the way with their sacrifice become the standards under which we march. For this time, we march to win. This time, we march for Malaysia.

MIS

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Malaysian Political Blogger Charged with Sedition
Jed Yoong
06 May 2008
Questions over the alleged involvement of the deputy prime minister in a murder case earn a stint in jail*
Raja Petra Kamaruddin, the editor of a popular Malaysian website called Malaysia Today, was ordered jailed Tuesday on sedition charges after a flame-throwing article last month that linked Deputy Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak to the murder of Mongolian translator Altantuya Shaariibuu and accused Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi of withholding evidence about the case.

Altantuya was executed on October 20, 2006, allegedly by two of Najib’s bodyguards at the request of political analyst Abdul Razak Baginda, one of Najib’s closest friends. She had flown to Malaysia to confront Abdul Razak, who had jilted her, and to ask for money for support when she was killed with two bullets to the head and her body blown up with plastic explosives in a patch of jungle near the suburban city of Shah Alam. She was last seen being bundled into a car and driven away from Abdul Razak’s house.

The article, titled “Let’s Send the Murderers of Altantuya to Hell,” highlighted a series of controversies and irregularities in the trial of Abdul Razak and the two bodyguards, and questioned whether Najib is immune from Malaysia’s laws. The murder trial has been droning on for nearly a year, raising questions of whether it is being deliberately delayed because of the closeness of the three to top political figures.

Stung by the questions, Najib’s press secretary, Sariffuddin Tengku Ahmad, issued a statement defending his boss’s innocence on April 29 and threatened legal action if allegations in the press and elsewhere of Najib’s involvement in the case continued. The statement also denied that Najib had anything to do with erasing the victim’s immigration records, or that he had ever met her. Many questions were left unanswered, however, with bloggers subsequently questioning the statement and with questions seemingly growing to the point where observers are beginning to question Najib’s viability to succeed Abdullah Badawi when the prime minister ultimately decides to step down.

The police showed up at Raja Petra’s door last Friday to question him about the matter. He refused to cooperate. On Tuesday, he refused to pay RM5,000 in bail Tuesday in protest of what he called “political harassment” after being charged, and elected to go to jail instead. There was no indication when he would be released.

"Is it seditious to influence people against corrupt leaders? There is nothing seditious," he told reporters outside the court where he was charged.

The sedition charge is unusual to say the least, since such charges are laid for conduct or language inciting rebellion against the authority of a state. Although scathing, his questions over allegations that the deputy prime minister was connected to the case hardly appear to constitute inciting rebellion. Some legal authorities in Kuala Lumpur had expected Najib to file suit for defamation, although others pointed out that a civil suit for defamation would expose the deputy premier to motions for discovery and questioning over his relationship, if any, to the dead woman.

The leadership’s depth of irritation over Raja Petra is evidenced by the fact that he has been charged although he is a member of the royal family of Selangor. It is extremely rare for royalty to be charged for any criminal offenses. Some members of royalty have literally got away with murder. However, as a continuing thorn in the side of Malaysian government leaders, he has been arrested and questioned before. Malaysia Today, he said in an interview last year with local media, gets as many as 1 million hits a day.

In the offending article, Raja Petra called attention to the prosecutors' sudden announcement before the start of the trial that only three people were involved in the murder and the abrupt change in the prosecuting team who built the case and subsequently resigned.

The article also charged that an affidavit filed by Razak Baginda after his arrest said he accused had gone see Najib and Rosmah Mansor, Najib's wife, about his problems with Altantuya. It also said that Najib had written to the Malaysian embassy to support Altantuya's visa application and that a photograph exists of Altantuya, Najib and Baginda that was taken in Singapore. Najib has sworn to Allah that he had never met the woman. Rosmah last week also denied any involvement in the matter.

The most explosive part of the article suggested that Prime Minister Abdullah Badawi might be holding on to evidence given to him that implicates Najib to “keep Najib in line” and accused the prime minister of being an accessory to murder, adding that “burying evidence that will affect the outcome of the trial and interfere in seeing justice done renders Abdullah as guilty as those currently on trial and those who also should be on trial but are not.”

Opposition politicians condemned the sedition charge as political intimidation and asked for justice to be served. The nonpartisan reform organization Aliran commented that the arrest "only raises more questions. It raises suspicion that it is meant not only to politically bludgeon Raja Petra but also to make an example of him for the rest of the blogging fraternity and civil society."

“This is more political harassment of bloggers. Is this part of the reforms that the prime minister is talking about? Is this the new open government?” William Leong, the People's Justice Party treasurer and Raja Petra’s lawyer, told reporters.

“The case has dragged on for far too long. It is undermining public confidence in the system,” said Lim Kit Siang, the founder of the opposition Democratic Action Party, which his son now leads, said when asked about his views on the case.

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Web censorship fears as online journalist faces sedition charge
Thursday, 08 May 2008

(Nieuwsbank) Reporters Without Borders today condemned the jailing of Raja Petra Kamarudin, editor of online publication Malaysia Today (www.malaysia-today.net/2008/) on a charge of sedition over an article on the murder of model, Altantuya Shaariibuu, implicating the deputy prime minister.

Kamarudin refused to pay a fine of 5,000 ringgit (just over 1,000 euros) and is currently being held in Sungai Buloh prison, 25 kilometres from the capital Kuala Lumpur.

Raja Petra Kamarudin, 58, nicknamed RPK, was arrested under the 1948 Sedition Act that punishes "any incitement to hatred, suspicion or contempt of any leader or government member". He faces up to three years in prison.

In his 25 April 2008 article headlined "Let's send the Altantuya murderers to hell", Kamarudin said he suspected deputy prime minister, Najib Abdul Razak, and his wife of being linked to the murder of the 28-year-old model, killed by two bullets to the head and found near Kuala Lumpur in October 2006. Najib Abdul Razak has denied Kamarudin's allegations, calling them "groundless".

"This is the first time that a blogger has been officially accused of sedition in Malaysia," the worldwide press freedom organisation said. "The authorities are using Raja Petra Kamarudin as a scapegoat. The government wants to silence online criticism. Given the state of the press, the Internet is the main space where citizens can express themselves freely. We urge the authorities to free Raja Petra Kamarudin while awaiting trial".

(JPEG) The authorities questioned Kamarudin about the article on 2 May, under Section 233 of the Communication and Multimedia Act, which provides for up to one year in prison and harsh fines for online publication of false or defamatory articles. Police have seized his computer.

Reporters Without Borders managed to speak to the online editor on 3 May, when he expressed his "anxiety" that he could go to prison for refusing to speak. "My article is political, my blog is political, Najib Razak is a politician and this murder is political", he told independent news website Malaysiakini.com.

The ministry of internal security has been using the fight against incitement to racial hatred or insulting the King, to silence dissident voices, particularly bloggers. In July 2007, Justice Minister, Nazri Abdul Aziz, said the government would not hesitate to use the Internal Security Act (ISA) to punish them. The ISA provides for two years in prison without trial for offences such as "breaching state security".

Kamarudin has come in for previous harassment from the authorities. He was arrested in 2001 while running the website Free Anwar Campaign (www.freeanwar.net), campaigning on behalf of deputy Anwar Ibrahim, who was sentenced to nine years in prison for organising a demonstration against corruption in Kuala Lumpur in 1998.

The Malaysian blogosphere is extremely vigorous and chiefly backs the opposition. Malaysia Today's site has received the equivalent of nearly 8,000 euros in donations in the past 24 hours following an appeal launched yesterday by his associates at the start of legal proceedings against Kamarudin.

His wife, Marina Lee, tried to visit Kamarudin today, but was not able to see him because RPK' had apparently waived his right to visits.



WHO is BLOODY SEDITIOUS???

Najib: Case against blogger not politically motivated

(NST) MERSING: Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak said the case against blogger Raja Petra Kamaruddin was not politically motivated.

Dismissing talk to the contrary especially on the Internet, he said the case against the 58-year-old webmaster, who was charged under the Sedition Act 1948, should not be construed as a move to clamp down on bloggers or freedom of speech.

"The government has always taken a very liberal stand with bloggers and the Internet and we will continue to do so. But there are laws in this country related to sedition and defamation.

"Just because you operate from cyberspace, it does not absolve you from having those laws applied to you.

"Whatever the case, the Attorney-General will decide if there is a case," Najib said at Camp Iskandar here, when asked about Raja Petra being charged under the Sedition Act 1948 on Tuesday.

Raja Petra was charged with posting a seditious article on his Malaysia Today website at www.malaysia-today.net titled "Let's send the Altantuya murderers to hell". The murder case of the Mongolian woman is currently being heard in the High Court.

This is the fourth time that Raja Petra has been investigated. If he is convicted, he is liable to be fined RM5,000 or jailed up to three years or both.

Along with Raja Petra, a jeweller, Syed Akhbar Ali, 48, was also charged under the same act for posting a seditious comment on the Malaysia Today website.

The comment was in response to an article titled "Malaysia's organised crime syndicate: all roads lead to Putrajaya".

The comments concerned Malays and Islam.

Najib said that the government was not worried that the move could be unpopular.

"I do not think the government will be unpopular.

"We have to draw the line somewhere between right and wrong."

However, Najib declined to respond directly to Raja Petra's allegations against him or the latter's statement that bloggers were waging a war against the government.

"He can say what he likes, I do not want to comment."


A Call to Investigate Najib Tun Razak under the Sedition Act

by V for Vernon

My fellow Malaysians,

It is indeed noteworthy that our ever-so-efficient and conscientious Polis Di-Raja Malaysia and the Attorney General's Chambers have recently demonstrated vigilance and duty in upholding the laws of the land. As such, Raja Petra Raja Kamaruddin, editor of Malaysia-Today.net news portal and blog, has been charged under the Sedition Act 1948, specifically under Section 4(1)(c) related to publishing a seditious article. It is also understood that a Malaysian author, Syed Akbar Ali, was also charged for seditious comments on Malaysia-Today's website.

These two cases now are ultimately in the hands of our enlightened and impartial judiciary to determine if these two individuals are guilty. (Correct, correct, correct! I did indeed say "enlightened" and "impartial").

In the meantime, I would like to bring everyone's attention to a couple of other sections of the Sedition Act.

Under section 3(1), those acts defined as having a seditious tendency include:

3(1)(d) - to raise discontent or disaffection amongst the subjects of the Yang di-Pertuan Agong or of the Ruler of any State or amongst the inhabitants of Malaysia or of any State;
3(1)(e) - to promote feelings of ill-will and hostility between different races or classes of the population of Malaysia;

It is widely documented that in the days preceding Operasi Lallang in October 1987, Najib Tun Razak then as the head of UMNO Youth, made a speech at a rally in Kampung Baru where he vowed to bathe his keris in the blood of Malaysian Chinese citizens. And this speech was delivered against a background of banners by UMNO Youth saying such things as "MAY 13 HAS BEGUN" and "SOAK IT WITH CHINESE BLOOD".

I would therefore like to invite my fellow Malaysians to join me in a call to the Polis Di-Raja Malaysia and the Attorney General's Chambers to investigate, without fear or favor, Deputy Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak and to determine if he had indeed violated the sections above of the Sedition Act. Given that the event occurred 2 decades ago, there may perhaps be a statute of limitation in effect on whether Najib can be charged, if he had indeed broken the law. Never the less, it is only right that a full and impartial investigation be carried out.

And as a separate matter as to whether Najib ends up being charged or not, it is certainly the case that such a man who can put himself into such a vile context and say such heinous things, should be deemed unfit to become the Prime Minister of a multiracial country like Malaysia.

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