KUALA LUMPUR, April 1 — Zulkiflee SM Anwar Ulhaque is set to be tried for sedition this Friday for his critical comment over Opposition Leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim’s sodomy conviction in February.
The political cartoonist better known as Zunar said he was served the notice to appear at the High Court on Jalan Duta here at 9am on April 3, adding that he will be charged under Section 4 (1) of the Sedition Act.
“The use of the Sedition Act came as no surprise for me as in a corrupt regime, the truth is seditious. Najib’s regime is mentally corrupted and morally bankrupted.
“I would like to reiterate that the use of the Sedition Act will not silence me. I will keep exposing the corruptions and wrongdoings of the Barisan Nasional government,” Zunar said in a statement today.
The cartoonist said he also believed that the sedition charge was the government’s “vendetta” against his “cartoons”, particularly the “Pirate of the Carry BN” and “Conspiracy to Imprison Anwar” books.
He noted that after he was arrested for the tweet he made about the Federal Court ruling that sent Anwar to jail, the police opened another investigation on his cartoon books.
“Previously, I was arrested and detained for three days for the same case. During the detention, the police also opened a separate investigation on my cartoon
books, ‘Pirate of Carry BN’ and ‘Conspiracy to Imprison Anwar’.
“I am sure this prosecution is about “vendetta against cartoons,” he said.
Zunar was arrested for sedition over his tweet criticising the Anwar verdict on February 10. He was held in remand for three days.
Rights groups and opposition leaders condemned the government for the arrest, calling it an infringement on civil liberties and free expression.
