Table 1. Comparison of penalties under different laws* Legislation Sedition Act 1948 Section 233 of CMA Section 124C of Penal Code Section 298 of Penal Code PPPA – Possession of material PPPA – Production, publication, sales and distribution of material Section 7(b) of Syariah Criminal Offences (Federal Territories) Act Prison sentence** (in years) 3 (or 5)**** 1 15 1 – 3 Fine (in MYR) 5,000 50,000 – –***** 5,000 20,0000 Both*** Yes Yes No Yes No No 2 3,000 Yes This is not a comprehensive comparison but only highlights some of the laws discussed in this report. ** Refers to the possible maximum sentence. *** Could be sentenced to both imprisonment and fine. **** In the event of a subsequent offence.***** Not listed in the Penal Code, but read in line with Section 283(1)(a) Criminal Procedure Code, there is technically no limit but it shall not be excessive. * Procedure Code. Curiously, the arrests made in this case included those of a fisherman and his son, who were allegedly owners of the offending Facebook account.85 The two were arrested off the coast of Malaysia while they were out fishing.86 Furthermore, the practice of chain remand87 was also utilised against those detained in this case. Some of the detainees were subjected to a detention period of close to two weeks, when their remand period should not be more than seven days. On top of the peculiarities mentioned above, the Royal Malaysian Police maintains a Twitter watchdog account that occasionally calls out online users whom they deem offensive.88 Similarly, the former Inspector-General of Police of Malaysia is also an avid user of Twitter and often makes comments praising the police force or calling out individuals whom he finds “offensive” or who have supposedly made “seditious” comments online. A good example of this can be seen when a well-known human rights lawyer and activist, Michelle Yesudas, commented on the rape threats made by non-state actors and members of the public in relation to the Aishah Tajuddin case. In that incident, the former Inspector-General of Police tweeted a demand for the activist to explain her tweet to the Royal Malaysian 85 My Metro. (2016, 1 June). Izlaily Nurul Ain Hussein. ‘Minah Pendek’ direman empat hari. My Metro. www.hmetro.com.my/node/141948 86 Malaysia Kini. (2016, 31 May). Polis cekup ‘Minah Pendek’ hina TMJ di tengah laut. Malaysia Kini. www.malaysiakini.com/ news/343641#MO4VUz5lF0ViXesm.97 87 Chain remand is where an individual is repeatedly re-arrested at the end of the remand period. SUARAM has in the past documented cases where individuals were remanded in this way for 80 days. Free Malaysia Today. (2016, 15 March). Six men allege torture during 80-day remand. Free Malaysia Today. www.freemalaysiatoday.com/category/nation/2016/03/15/ six-men-allege-torture-while-in-80-day-remand 88 PCIRC Official @OfficialPcirc (Police Cyber Investigation Response Centre). https://twitter.com/officialpcirc Police and accused her of causing restlessness and panic among the public.89 While there is limited repercussion on those who are called out by the former Inspector-General of Police, there are concerns that the public call-out and the threat of investigation posed by the Inspector-General of Police’s scrutiny on Twitter may eventually have a chilling effect on the rest of the internet users in Malaysia.90 An interesting point to note is that the former Inspector-General of Police has in the past considered applications such as WhatsApp as part of social media as opposed to messaging applications.91 While the law does not discriminate between the platforms in which a message is delivered, the stance of the former Inspector-General may open up new avenues in which the state may intervene, with the presumption that private spaces, such as closed chat groups, form part of the public sphere of social media. Non-state actors In recent years, non-state actors have nurtured a growing role in the “enforcement” of morality in Malaysia. Many of the cases referred to below were initiated by individuals as opposed to government agencies. In addition to cases involving 89 “Mohon @chelle_yesudas jelas kan kpd @PDRMsia, apa yg dimaksudkan dgn tweet di bawah, jgn timbul kan keresahan rakyat” – rough translation: “Please @chelle_yesudas, explain to the Royal Malaysian Police what you mean by the tweet below, don’t cause worry (unrest) among the people.” https://twitter. com/KBAB51/status/579854384235827200 90 A phenomenon that has yet to manifest, as individuals are still more than happy to criticise and challenge political authorities on social media. 91 Rodzi, N. H. (2016, 12 January). IGP: Police targeting ‘immature Malaysians’ on social media. The Star Online. www.thestar.com. my/news/nation/2016/01/12/igp-police-to-monitor-social-media 92 / Unshackling Expression