AG to explain Section 114a: Nazri

(The Sun) - The Attorney-General's Chambers (AGC) has been asked to explain to the public the government's clarification over the confusion surrounding the controversial Section 114a of the Evidence Act.

Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Datuk Seri Mohd Nazri Aziz toldtheSun however it is up to the AGC on how it intends to communicate to the people.

"They are (already) engaging stakeholders, such as the Bar Council.

"I have also arranged a meeting on Wednesday between (Umno Youth chief) Khairy Jamaluddin and the AGC as Khairy met me last week and requested for a meeting with the AGC," he said.

Last week, Khairy had in a tweet called for the section to be revoked.

This came after the Centre of Independent Journalism (CIJ) had organised Malaysia's first Internet Blackout Day on Aug 14.

Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Abdul Razak tweeted on the same day that the cabinet had been told to look into the legislation.

However, a cabinet meeting chaired by Deputy Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin last week decided to maintain it.

Critics and lawmakers from both sides of the divide have been lobbying for the law to be repealed after it came into force last month, stressing that internet users are now automatically presumed guilty for any offensive content posted through their registered networks, hand-held devices, blogs and web portals.

It was reported that last Friday, the Bar Council had met the AG to discuss the amendments made to the Evidence Act.

Nazri said there has been much confusion as many do not understand the legal terms of the amendment, and the matter is taken out of context.

"People are free to talk but be more responsible, (don't cause) unsubstantiated fear," Nazri said. "I think most (people) who write (or talk) about this don't understand. It's not presumption of guilt.

"It is presumption of fact and the safeguard is the court. If in any situation the court is convinced, only then the burden of proof will shift to the accused and he (the accused) can challenge this later through a balance of probabilities.

"People who are legally trained will know that the threshold in rebutting on the balance of probability is very much lower than trying to prove beyond reasonable doubt.

"But if you come and say you don't trust the court, then there is nothing I can do because in any developed country, the court is the arbiter of all this... You need to trust the court … If you come up to me and say you don't trust the court, then you are being childish," he said.

Citing the case of Umno Youth where a seditious message was posted on a Facebook page created in Umno Youth's name, Nazri said since the wing has lodged a police report the presumption of probability has shifted.

Nazri reiterated that the amendment was meant to protect the country's security, adding that people must look at the spirit of amendment as a whole as 114a is to complement the Security Offences (Special Measures) Act 2012, Penal Code (amendment) Act 2012 and Criminal Procedure Code (amendment) (No2) Act 2012.

He added that people should be more responsible and prudent, especially when lending their smartphones or gadgets to others.

Asked on the presumption that even the owner of a coffee shops or outlets that offered a free Wi-Fi facility could be presumed to have published an online publication originating from a computer using the Wi-Fi facility, Nazri said it does not automatically mean that the owner will be charged.

"The only thing that will happen is that we will get your cooperation to trace to the person (who allegedly posted matters deemed seditious), we are not going to charge you because someone else used your Wi-Fi facility," he said, rubbishing claims that the amendment curtails people's freedom.