The statement today by Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad that no time frame has been fixed for the repeal of the Sedition Act, 1948 gives the impression that Its repeal is not a priority of the Pakatan Harapan government and is most regretted.
Tun Dr Mahathir seems to suggest that the repeal of the Sedition Act would be a tedious process and as such, would take time. With the greatest of respect, this cannot be the case as such repeal does not require a two-third majority as is the case where an amendment is proposed to the Federal Constitution.
The continued use of the said Act despite the assurance given by PH that it will be abolished eventually is an absolute waste of public funds and government resources and serves no useful purpose.
The government should be concentrating its efforts in proposing new laws to tackle racial hatred in order to curtail such problems from occurring in the future. There is no need for the Sedition Act to remain for the said purpose as the government has already committed to introducing other more effective laws such as the Religious and Racial Hatred Act which is in the pipeline.
I note various parties have called for a moratorium to be imposed pending the abolishment of the Sedition Act and I welcome the same. However, it must be noted that the eventual abolishment of the Sedition Act ought to be a priority of this government given its blatant abuse, particularly on freedom of speech in the past.
In the circumstances, it is hoped efforts are taken as soon as possible to take the necessary steps to repeal the Sedition Act and to replace the same with laws which are consistent with basic internationally recognised human rights.