KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 29 — Malaysia rated poorly in its human rights practices according to the Human Rights Watch’s (HRW) World Report this year, largely due to the heavy-handed use of the controversial Sedition Act 1948.

The annual report claimed that Putrajaya was guilty of a long list of alleged abuses of fundamental rights, especially in its crackdown on civil society and its political opponents after a less-than stellar performance in the 2013 national polls.

It zoomed in on the use of the Sedition Act as the biggest threat to free speech in Malaysia, claiming that it has been used to wantonly prosecute any speech that is critical of the government or the ruling Barisan Nasional, or anything perceived to be derogatory of religion or the royalty.

“Article 10 of Malaysia’s Constitution guarantees that every citizen has the right to freedom of expression, but the Malaysian government violates that right on a regular basis,” read the report.

The federal government was heavily criticised after launching a sedition blitz lasting several months last year, during which politicians, social activists, an academic and a journalist were either hauled in for questioning or charged in court.

As part of his raft of legislative reforms, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak had in 2012, and on at least two other occasions after that, promised to repeal the Sedition Act.

He announced at his party Umno’s general assembly last November that the Act would be retained and amended to manage dicey racial relations in the country.

HRW deputy Asia director, Phil Robertson, said the about-turn on the Act implied that the government believes it can only remain in power by “suppressing speech, harassing opposition groups, and targeting prominent figures with legal action”.

Meanwhile, the report highlighted what it described as “politically motivated prosecutions to cripple the political opposition”, citing the sedition rap on the late Karpal Singh and the second sodomy charge against opposition leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.

The report also criticised the use of the Communications and Multimedia Act and the Printing Presses and Publication Act to censor the media, such as in the cases of repeated pressure on news portal Malaysiakini and the temporary suspension of weekly publication, The Heat.

Civil society was not spared; with the Registrar of Societies (RoS) actively restricting groups such as advocacy group Negara-Ku as the home minister —  who oversees the registrar —  has the “absolute discretion” to declare a society illegal.

Adding to the report’s long list of alleged human rights violations committed by Malaysia are regular incidences of death in custody, and the “pervasive discrimination against lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people” who face arbitrary arrests and imprisonment, abuse and discrimination.

HRW executive director Kenneth Roth, in his introduction to the report, warned that such violations of fundamental rights will end up weighing heavily on a country in the long run.

“The short-term gains of undermining those core values and the fundamental wisdom that they reflect are rarely worth the long-term price that must inevitably be paid,” he said.