Asian Wall Street Journal
13th January 2000

Editorial: Arrests Undermine Malaysia's Democracy

HONG KONG -- So far this week authorities in Malaysia have arrested three prominent members of the political opposition under the country's Sedition Act. That law and the Internal Security Act give Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad almost unlimited powers to silence and imprison his opponents. Since taking office in 1981, he has repeatedly used these and other laws to protect his authoritarian rule. These latest arrests demonstrate once again that Malaysians enjoy very few fundamental human rights that cannot be taken away if they dare to oppose Dr. Mahathir.

The arrests further undermine Malaysia's democratic institutions. The Mahathir administration appears to be exercising its wide-ranging powers in response to parliamentary and state elections last November which showed the ruling coalition's support among the country's Malay majority waning. The Islamic opposition party PAS in particular made headway in the Malay heartland, taking control of the state government of Trengganu. The PAS party newspaper, Harakah, has become the most widely read periodical in the country.

These developments are largely a reflection of widespread dissatisfaction at the way Dr. Mahathir fired his former deputy prime minister, Anwar Ibrahim, and the prosecution of Mr. Anwar on corruption and sodomy charges last year. Now the prime minister is hitting back.

Let's consider the arrests in more detail. On Wednesday, Zulkifli Sulong, the editor of Harakah, was arrested for sedition, reportedly because of an article which suggested there was a government conspiracy to frame Mr. Anwar. Karpal Singh, deputy leader of the Democratic Action Party and Mr. Anwar's lawyer, was reportedly arrested for similar comments he made in court defending Mr. Anwar. Marina Yusoff, a leader of the National Justice Party, was arrested for comments about the role of Dr. Mahathir's United Malays National Organization in race riots in 1969.

In none of the three cases above were the opposition leaders inciting the violent overthrow of the government or indeed any kind of revolt or rebellion. Rather they are accused of sedition in the sense of undermining national security or provoking racial discord. In other words, a hefty burden has been put on them to prove that what they said, regardless of whether it was true, did neither of those things. This sends a strong warning to both newspapers and public figures that any criticism of the government may have to be defended in an expensive court battle, and the price for miscalculation is a loss of freedom. It is not hard to see that this will have a chilling effect on free speech.

In most countries, this kind of "sedition" is no longer prosecuted precisely because of the wide recognition that the government can use such laws to silence opposition. The process of democracy demands that citizens have the right to question whether their government is acting wrongly, or even acting in violation of the law, without the fear of being targeted as a criminal in return. As it is being applied, Malaysia's Sedition Act allows the government to shift a heavy burden of proof for political speech, which is often inherently subjective, onto the speaker. In effect it raises criticism of the state to the level of lese majeste-a situation that is incompatible with democracy.

In Malaysia as elsewhere there are adequate remedies, including libel and slander laws, if opposition politicians make false and reckless accusations against particular members of the government. But the Malaysian government chose a sharper weapon. Malaysian voters will not regard it as a coincidence that the supposed crimes now at issue occurred during the lead-up to the November general election.

Politicians and journalists like Ms. Marina and Messrs. Zulkifi and Singh should be applauded for bravely airing their criticisms, despite the threat of prosecution. For if Dr. Mahathir succeeds in intimidating his critics into silence, his authoritarian tendencies will become even more dangerous for Malaysia's future. If the right of the opposition to criticize the government is taken away, Malaysian democracy is finished.