Selangor Journal

Sedition Act: Prosecution must prove intent

BY: NORHAYATI UMOR
SHAH ALAM, NOV 25: The Appeals Court in an important decision today decided that Section 3(3) of the Sedition Act which states that the element of intent need not be proven is against the Federal Constitution.
In allowing Sri Muda Assemblyman Shuhaimi Shafiei’s appeal to declare the colonial law invalid, the panel of judges led by Datuk Lim Yee Lan in their unanimous decision ruled that Section 3(3) violated Article 10 of the Federal Constitution.
“The High Court’s decision (which rejected the initial motion) is set aside,” he said.
The other judges on the panel are Datuk Varghese George and Harminder Singh Dhaliwal.
When delivering the court’s decision, Varghese said under Article 8, all individuals are equal in the eyes of the law.
“We reminded ourselves about this fact. Clearly, Section 3(3) created a different regime that makes it prone to seditious elements. It deviates from the norm,” he said.
He said that under normal circumstances, the burden of proof lies with the prosecution.
“But under Section 3(3), the burden of proof does not lie with the prosecution,” he said.
Meanwhile, Shuhaimi said that the decision has finally brought justice and immense benefit to every citizen who has been charged under the vile act.
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“Congratulations to all my great lawyers who argued the case during the appeal. May a new light shine in the courts with this decision.
“The constitutional challenge against Section 3(3) of the Sedition Act 1948 which states that there is no need to prove malicious intent is rejected by the court and now the court has ruled that Section 3(3) is invalid.
“As such, prosecution now has to prove intent in all cases involving the Sedition Act that are currently being argued in court or in the process of appeal,” he told SelangorKini.
On February 7, 2011, Shuhaimi was tried at the Shah Alam Sessions Court on the charge of uploading a seditious article in his blog, Srimuda.blogspot.com regarding Datuk Mohd Khusrin Munawi’s appointement as the new Selangor State Government Secretary.
He was charged with committing the offense at Pusat Khidmat Rakyat, Jalan Anggerik Vanilla, Kota Kemuning di Shah Alam, on December 30, 2010.
On April 1, 2011, Shuhaimi filed a motion at the Shah Alam High Court to request that the sedition charge against him be dropped under the reason that the Sedition Act contravened Article 10 of the Federal Constitution that guarantees freedom of speech.
The Shah Alam High Court rejected his motion on August 26, 2011.

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