The Asean Parliamentarians For Human Rights (APHR) has called on the Malaysian government to safeguard Parliament's independence and ensure its effective government oversight.
In its report, “Parliament At Risk: Reprisal against MPs in Southeast Asia in 2023”, the rights group urged the government of Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim to cease all judicial harassment of lawmakers.
Highlighting the critical need for change, APHR suggested that the government abolish or review repressive laws frequently used to criminalise parliamentarians and human rights defenders.
Additionally, it said that the government should take a clear stance against the increasing spread of online disinformation, including the sexist and misogynist attacks against female MPs.
Abolish or review Sedition Act
The group said that despite the change of government, there was concern about the maintenance of repressive laws such as the Sedition Act and the Communications and Multimedia Act.
“APHR had consistently drawn attention to the laws of particular concern, the Sedition Act and the Communications and Multimedia Act,” it stated.
One of the cases cited in the report under the Sedition Act is against Kedah Menteri Besar Muhammad Sanusi Md Nor. He was charged in July last year for allegedly uttering words that had the tendency to incite disloyalty against a ruler.
Sanusi was charged with two counts of sedition over his remarks during a political speech.
In the report, the group said Sanusi's charges had raised concern about the acts being used for political purposes as he was charged ahead of the Kedah state election.
The report also highlighted a case in 2016, during the BN era, where former PKR MP Chuan Tian Chang, better known as Tian Chua, was sentenced to three months in prison and fined about RM1,800 after delivering a speech denouncing racism and corruption.
Protect female MPs
APHR also stated that they had documented the use of sexist and misogynist rhetoric against women parliamentarians across Southeast Asia for several years and had called on the government to take much-needed steps to prevent the matter from happening again in the future.
Bentong MP Young Syefura Othman was among those named in the report as having faced misogynistic and inappropriate comments.
Young received inappropriate comments from social media users about her while giving a speech in Kedah and another harassing comment about her attire when she visited a flooded area in her constituency.
On the issue of online misinformation, APHR expressed concern about the growing trend of religious and racial polarisation.
During the general election in 2022, discrimination and hateful campaign rhetoric flooded various social media platforms, including TikTok.
The group emphasised that such narratives contribute to division within Malaysian society and worsen the marginalisation of vulnerable minority groups.
Others in the region
The report also included problems in Thailand, Cambodia, The Philippines, and Myanmar.
Among the concerns raised are the 74 MPs jailed in Myanmar following the military coup, electoral issues in Thailand and Cambodia including allowing citizens to vote freely, and judicial harassment, also known as “red-tagging”, which is used against left-leaning lawmakers in the Philippines.
In the detailed report, the group stressed the importance of having parliamentary immunity as it promotes healthy and vibrant democratic institutions.
“Parliament, by extension parliamentarians, plays a crucial role in providing oversight of the government in a functioning democracy.
“It is, therefore, of the utmost importance that lawmakers can conduct their mandate without fear and reprisals from the government,” it said.
The group pledged to continue calling on all stakeholders and international partners to protect parliamentarians at risk in the region. - Mkini
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