KUCHING, Jan 23 ― When Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak said a provision would be inserted into the Sedition Act 1948 against anyone calling for the secession of Sarawak and Sabah, it alarmed many in Sarawak's civil societies.

This is because the provision would curtail their right to speak of the perceived “injustice and unfairness” in the treatment of the state by federal leaders.

They also feel the amendments would be in breach of the Malaysian Agreement 1963 which was signed by Malaya, Sarawak, Sabah, Britain and Singapore in the formation of Malaysia. (Singapore was subsequently kicked out of Malaysia in 1965.)

According to Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Nancy Shukri, a Bill to amend the Sedition Act would be tabled in the March sitting of Parliament.

Lina Soo, former president of the de-registered Sarawak Association for People's Association (SAPA), said the amendments would criminalise anyone who dares to speak out for their rights as Sarawakians.

“According to legal opinions that we have gathered, the people of Sarawak and Sabah can challenge the amendments because it is ultra vires the Malaysia Agreement and Constitution.

“We members of the Concerned Sarawakians Group are sending out letters to all Sarawakian Members of Parliament and State Assemblymen for them to take action against the amendments,” she added.

But she is surprised that Sarawakians politicians have been “strangely quiet” and asked whether it is their political strategy across the board.

Najib's announcement that the Sedition Act would not only be retained, but would also be strengthened with new amendments including a provision to bar secession of Sarawak and Sabah, was prompted largely by calls for secession by the people in the two Borneo states.

SAPA, which spearheaded the calls, was declared an unlawful society by the Home Ministry before the Umno general assembly was held in November last year.

Constitutional law expert Robert Pei said the amendment to the Sedition Act will mean that it will be unlawful  for Sarawak and Sabah people to question their states' rights in Malaysia or their right to secede from Malaysia and for anyone to question “Malay rights and privileges” and Islamic religious issues.

The proposal was met with some strong initial local and international opposition but most have been silent since.

Even the campaign to repeal the Sedition Act seems to have become strangely muted.

“I see that the banning of SAPA, the crackdown with arrests and charges in Peninsular Malaysia under this Act and the East Sabah security “situation” as convenient reasons which could be used to justify the retention of the Act… to reinforce the power of the weakened ruling party, Umno.

“At the same time they see it as an opportunity to plug a gap in their laws to prevent secession of Sarawak and Sabah from Malaysia,” Pei said.

He pointed out that the amendments are much more biased against Sarawak and Sabah and constitutionally incorrect as far as the Malaysian Agreement 1963 and the Federal Constitution are concerned.

“For the Malaysian government to amend the Sedition Act, to ban any discussion of the right to secede, race and religion and related Malaysia formation issues is tantamount to amending the Malaysia Agreement 1963 and the Constitution.

“This would be illegal as any amendment of MA63 will be a breach of the express and implied terms and conditions of the Agreement.

“This will open up other legal issues such as nullification of MA63. In such a case, the countries forming Malaysia will no longer be bound by MA63 and are free to leave the Federation,” he said.

Pei quoted a statement by the IGC Report chairman Lord Lansdowne when answering questions during the debate on the Malaysian Agreement in the Sarawak State Legislative Council that “any State voluntarily entering a federation had an intrinsic right to secede at will, and that it was therefore unnecessary to include it in the Constitution.”

“So it appears that the right to secede still exists otherwise Umno would not have bothered to want to ban this right,” he said.

Pei reminded the Federal and Sarawak and Sabah state governments that it is a requirement of the Malaysia Agreement and Constitution that any amendments affecting the Malaysia formation rights of Sarawak and Sabah cannot be done without prior consultation and agreement of the two states and a two-thirds majority in Parliament to amend the Constitution.

He said it would further be illegal for the Sarawak and Sabah governments to agree with such an amendment as neither they nor the Malaysian Government and Opposition have any mandate to make this amendment.

Failure to comply with this legal requirement, he said, would certainly be a breach of the Malaysia Agreement 1963 and clearly ultra vires the Constitution.

Pei concluded that since the amendment is intended to directly abrogate a fundamental right of the Sarawak and Sabah peoples, a referendum should be held to allow the people to decide on the issue.

“In my opinion no people in their right mind will vote for it,” he declared.

PKR Mambong branch chairman Willie Mongin said the current provisions of the Sedition Act  are adequate and should be retained as Malaysia, like any other country, needs to protect its national security.

“But to insert in a new provision into the Sedition Act that bars Sarawakians and Sabahans from talking about their rights is not right and justifiable,” he said.

“Sarawakians have every right to speak about something that they are unhappy about, so why must the government curtail their freedom?” he asked, adding that the government should not kill the messenger otherwise, it will not know the feelings of the people on the ground.

Mongin suggested that the Federal government holds a referendum to get the views of the people of two Borneo states on what they think of Malaysia, just like what the United Kingdom government did in dealing with the secession issue of Scotland.

“The referendum should tell whether we are happy with Malaysia and if we are not happy, then something ought to be done,” he said.