Chan used Christianity to incite people against gov't

Blog House secretary Tony Yew, who recently lodged a police report against another blogger for religious incitement, said he cannot stand aside and watch his religion being used to garner popularity.

Yew, who described himself as a budding entrepreneur and motoring journalist, said he was a Catholic, too, but the line must be drawn as there were limits to what people could do.

"Inciting in the name of religion is not one of it," he said in his July 1 blog post titled "Don't push it".

Asked to comment on his police report against blogger Chan Lilian, Yew said he was not issuing a statement, but Malaysiakini was welcome to refer to his blog, 'muststopthis', for his side of the story.

In the post, which generated 64 comments, Yew says he made the police report against Chan as his warning to her to remove her allegedly seditious tweet had been ignored.

"I guess now it's time I did my part to debunk the notion that ALL CATHOLICS are off (sic) the view that we have been religiously persecuted," he says in the posting.

I am appealing to all right minded (not like minded) people to think rationally and not react emotionally.

"Malaysia is OUR COUNTRY, and do not let the likes of (Perkasa chief) Ibrahim Ali, or (Bersih 2.0 chief) Ambiga (Sreenevasan) and those bent on tearing Malaysia apart for their benefits to prevail."

In another blog post titled 'Bersih, a gathering for what?' published on the same day, Yew urges the police to investigate Chan and charge her with sedition.

'We must all be vigilant in safeguarding this nation'

He asks that police use her as an example for others, so that no one would take National Unity for granted.

"As long as there are those out there who think they can get away with this, then we must all be vigilant in safeguarding this nation we all love," he says.

Chan, who works as a temporary staff member of the Penang government, yesterday had her computer and modem seized by police to assist them in probing into Yew's report.

In his police report, Yew accused her of incitingChristians to march against the government for their persecution in her June 29 tweet, allegedly promoting the Bersih 2.0 rally, which the police have declared illegal.

Police told the mother of four that she was being investigated under Section 4(1) of the Sedition Act for a tweet she sent out, as well as under Section 27(5) of the Police Act for allegedly participating in the July 9 Bersih 2.0 rally in Kuala Lumpur.

If convicted, Chan faces a jail term of up to three years, a fine of not more than RM5,000, or both.

Chan has denied any intention to incite Christians to take part in the Bersih rally, saying her tweet was personal, and meant to be read only by her 900 followers, including Yew, who she had accidentally added.

She said she neither mentioned the July 9 Bersih 2.0 rally nor had she attended the rally in Kuala Lumpur, or attached a yellow badge in her twitter avatar to symbolise her support for the coalition backed by 62 NGOs.

She decried that the privacy of her tweet had been abused by Yew, for reasons only best known to him.

She also condemned Yew as secretary of Blog House, asking how the latter could represent the new media, as suggested by the government for its media council, if its members could not tolerate dissent.

Meanwhile, Yew who had been retrenched from his job before joining Blog House, admitted that he had previously been demonised for 'switching sides', but that he knew himself better.

On his police report, Yew said he too had sacrificed his time for the matter.

He related how he was asked to attend a meeting with an officer from the and Malaysian Communications Multimedia Commission (MCMC), who acted on his report against Chan Lilian.

During the meeting, Yew said, the officer explained why he needed to meet with him; that he accepted his explanation and went on to assist the officer.

Police report done with belief it will be investigated

He added that he would probably be called up by the commission a few more times after this, and wondered if the subject of his complaint would be required to do the same.

"The police report I made last week was one that I did with absolute belief that the authorities would investigate any attempt of incitement," he added.

Yew, a web administrator, admitted that since he lodged the report, he had been receiving many calls - both supporting as well as condemning his action.

"Lets get this straight. It is not about me, or me being a Catholic or Christian. It's about what we as Malaysians must do to safeguard our country from extremists," he said.

"I gave three hours of my life last week, and I will give another three hours when I will be questioned and interviewed by the investigators at MCMC," he added.

In the same blog post, Yew makes his stance on Bersih 2.0 very clear - that the organisation was "nothing more than a desperate attempt to push the government to wield the ISA".

He also professes support for Prime Minister Najib Razak for having produced "gains in trying times" and bashes opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim. - Malaysiakini