A BN lawmaker has called for Putrajaya to abolish the Peaceful Assembly Act instead of amending it in Parliament.
“What the people want is for the Peaceful Assembly (Amendment) Bill to be abolished so they can hold protests freely,” Shahidan Kassim (BN-Arau) debated the bill at the policy stage at Dewan Rakyat today.
He said that any formulation or abolishment of law should be done according to the situation of the nation.
“During the communist era, the government came out with the Internal Security Act as the people then had communist characteristics.
“During our (BN government) time, the opposition was a bit fired up, so we have this (Peaceful Assembly) Act,” Shahidan said.
“Entering the New Malaysia era, since everything is fine, we should abolish the Act.”
Shahidan questioned the need to debate about the bill which only proposed minor changes, including reducing the 10 days’ notice to the police for holding an assembly to seven days.
He ridiculed the government for lowering the voting age to 18 but only allowing a 21-year-old to organise a protest under PAA.
“People will laugh at us,” he said, urging the government to repeal the bill during the committee stage (third reading).
The Arau MP added that the government should liberate the people from this bill as the more the government imposed restrictions with law, the more people will attempt to break it.
On July 1, the government sought to amend the Peaceful Assembly Bill which will decriminalise street protests as part of the government's promised legal reforms.
[More to follow] - Mkini
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