Liga Mahasiswa Universiti Malaya (LMUM) has alleged intimidation after receiving a legal notice demanding it stop using the university’s name, as the group has yet to register formally as a student organisation.
LMUM said its president, Ammar Daniel Noor Irwan, received an email on March 6 from a law firm representing Universiti Malaya (UM), containing a cease-and-desist letter alongside a letter of undertaking (LOU).
According to the letters sighted by Malaysiakini, it is alleged that LMUM had infringed on the university’s trademark rights by using the UM name as part of its activities and social media platforms despite not being registered as an official society under the university.
The notice gave the group seven days to sign an undertaking agreeing to stop using the name and remove any association with the university, or risk facing a civil suit.
Responding to the issue, UM stated that the demands were issued after it received complaints about the group for allegedly affecting the university’s image and reputation.
The university said the letter was part of its corporate identity management process to ensure that the use of UM’s name and identity complies with the rules and guidelines set by the institution.
“This step was taken to avoid any confusion among the public regarding the status of any organisation or movement using the university’s name,” it said in a statement.
UM emphasised that while it respects students’ freedom of expression, the use of the institution’s name must comply with its regulations and safeguards.
Meanwhile, LMUM deputy president Ahsanul Akmal Sulam described the move as an attempt to intimidate students, arguing that most student movements lack the financial means to respond to legal threats.
“This is a form of intimidation because we are a student movement. Most student movements do not have money. By serving us this letter for us to sign in such a short time is very cruel.
“With only seven days given, how are we supposed to find funds to hire a lawyer?” he said during a press conference at Rumah Mandiri today.
Despite this, LMUM said that they are adamant about not signing the undertaking agreement and will be seeking legal advice moving forward, despite the time constraint.
Varsity ‘aware of existence’
When asked about their registration status, LMUM said the issue was not about registration but about the university’s decision to pursue legal action against a student movement operating on campus.
The group added that the university was already aware of its existence and questioned why the administration had not first approached its members to discuss formal registration.
“We are actually open to registering. But after receiving something like this from the university, we are not sure what will happen next,” Ahsanul added.
He also claimed that this is the first time the university has chosen to tread the legal route instead of using the Universities and University Colleges Act 1971 (UUCA) to reprimand student groups.
Liga Rakyat Demokratik president Hamdin Nordin also criticised the move, accusing the university of using public funds to intimidate students.
He said that UM should not be “wasting public funds” by appointing external lawyers to act against a student movement and called on the university to withdraw the legal notices.
“The public also has the right to know the actual costs incurred in appointing this external law firm, as university funds involve taxpayers’ money and student fees.
“Using such funds to pressure students is an unjustified waste,” he said on Instagram today.
Hamdin also urged Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim to review the issue, particularly regarding the use of public funds for legal action against students.
Meanwhile, Ahsanul stressed that LMUM would continue to defend students’ rights to organise and speak out on issues affecting the campus community and other student movements at large.
“We see this as a responsibility for the student movement to continue challenging this issue, so that it does not become a benchmark or precedent for other campuses to take similar actions against student movements operating within their universities.” - Mkini
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