KUALA LUMPUR, April 19 — Strong measures like the Prevention of Terrorism Act (Pota) are needed in order to curb the threat of extremism and terrorism, Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin said today.

The deputy prime minister told an anti-war forum here that signs of extremist tendencies among Malaysians must be “quickly nipped in the bud” before they pose an actual threat to the peace and stability of the country.

“Therefore, strong measures must be put in place to keep such threats in check and address their root cause.

“Malaysia has done so by introducing tough laws, including the Prevention of Terrorism Act, which has been passed by Parliament recently,” Muhyiddin told attendees of a forum titled “Engaging the young to criminalise war and energise peace.”

Comparing Malaysia to war-torn countries like Palestine and Syria, Muhyiddin said local youth must “understand and appreciate” how blessed Malaysians are.

“We have not seen an armed conflict or massive loss of lives (here),” he said.

The Pota was passed without amendment at the Dewan Rakyat at about 2.25am on April 7 after a debate of more than 12 hours.

The Bill was passed after the ninth block voting, with the final voting favouring the government when 79 MPs from Barisan Nasional (BN) supported the Bill while 64 MP from PR rejected it.

Last Thursday, the Sedition (Amendment) Bill 2015 was voted through after a record 14 hours of debate in the Dewan Rakyat.

Both laws needed Parliament’s clock to be stopped as sessions ran well past the daily cut-off point at midnight.

Pota revives preventive detention without trial that went away after the Internal Security Act 1960 (ISA) was abolished while the amendments to the Sedition Act have been criticised as the “most serious assault on freedom of speech” Malaysia has ever witnessed.