KUALA LUMPUR, March 3 — Lawyer Fadiah Nadwa Fikri said today Malaysians must "not be intimidated”, after the police opened a sedition investigation against her over demonstrations against the appointment of Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin as prime minister over the weekend.

The lawyer, who is also under a separate sedition investigation for allegedly insulting the monarchy shortly after the May 2018 elections, said she had been summoned for questioning this afternoon, and that the authorities have seized her Twitter account.

"Thanks everyone for your solidarity,” she tweeted, her first public statement since the police hauled her in for questioning.

"Following the investigation on me at Bukit Aman this afternoon, the police now have access to my Twitter account as I was compelled to surrender access under the Communications & Multimedia Act.

"We must not be intimidated. We will persevere.”

Police said last week they have opened a sedition investigation against the lawyer who organised back-to-back rallies last week to protest against the power tussle that caused the PH administration to collapse and helped install a new government led by Muhyiddin.

The authorities also have also launched investigations against vocal human rights activists Datuk Ambiga Sreenevasan and Datin Marina Mahathir after the two attended a separate gathering organised by the Save Malaysia Committee on Sunday.

Muhyiddin, who was appointed as the country’s eighth prime minister amid controversy over his nomination, is now the leader of a loose coalition called Perikatan Nasional that includes the former ruling coalition, Barisan Nasional.

The police investigations against the activists have raised concern that the new government was clamping down on dissent and signalled the return of the days of BN’s rule.

Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Abdul Hamid, however, pledged on Monday that the police would continue to respect the public’s right to free expression, but stressed that dissent must be within legal boundaries.