Curtailing Free Expression, Opinion and Information Online in Southeast Asia Malaysia In Malaysia, the Communications and Multimedia Act – which was brought into force to “ensure information security and network reliability and integrity” and should “not be construed as permitting the censorship of the Internet” – has, in practice, been misused to permit online censorship through charging individuals and barring access to and blocking news websites who post information online deemed critical of the ruling regime.395 Sections 233 and 263(2) of the CMA, in particular, have been used to target free expression online.396 In 2016, the Malaysian Bar Association warned that misuse of these sections would result in “a chilling effect on the freedom of opinion and thought and… a climate of fear that suffocates freedom of expression and threatens to silence Malaysians”.397 It noted that section 263(2) had been used to harass and intimidate independent media, and that in 2016 alone, at least 39 cases had been reported of individuals being questioned, arrested, charged or sentenced under the CMA.398 Section 233 of the CMA provides for criminal liability for any person who “by means of any network facilities or network service or applications service knowingly makes, creates, solicits, or initiates the transmission of any comment, request, suggestion or other communication” or “initiates a communication using any applications service… during which communication may or may not ensue” of any content which is “obscene, indecent or offensive” with “intent to annoy, abuse, threaten or harass another person”. Violations may be punished with up to a year in prison or a fine of up to RM 50,000 (approx. USD 12,144) or both, and an increased fine of RM 1,000 (approx. USD 243) per day for a continuing offence. The same punishment is applicable for an offence under section 211, which prohibits “content applications service provider(s), or other person(s) using a content applications service” from 395 Communications and Multimedia Act 1998 (‘CMA’), sections 3(2)(j), 3(3). Available at: https:// www.unodc.org/res/cld/document/mys/communications_and_multimedia_act_html/Malaysia_ Communications_and_Multimedia_Act_1998.pdf 396 See Article 19, ‘Malaysia: The Communications and Multimedia Act 1998 – Legal Analysis February 2017’ (‘Article 19 CMA analysis’), Available at: https://www.article19.org/data/files/ medialibrary/38689/Malaysia-analysis-Final-December.pdf 397 Malay Mail, ‘Communications and Multimedia Act being abused like Sedition Act, says Malaysian Bar’, 9 January 2017, Available at: https://www.malaymail.com/news/malaysia/2017/01/09/ communications-and-multimedia-act-being-abused-like-sedition-act-says-malay/1288815 398 Ibid. In 2017, it was reported that the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) – the country’s regulatory body for the communications and multimedia industry – had investigated 146 cases in that one year under section 233, following which 56 investigation papers were initiated. It is unclear how many of these cases were politically motivated. See Bernama, ‘Deputy minister: MCMC probed 269 cases under Communications and Multimedia Act’, Malay Mail, 6 November 2017, Available at: https://www.malaymail.com/news/malaysia/2017/11/06/deputyminister-mcmc-probed-269-cases-under-communications-and-multimedia-a/1503811 107