KUALA LUMPUR, July 26 — Barisan Nasional’s (BN) control over universities in the country created a sense of fear among students and faculty members in the past, Education Minister Maszlee Malik said.
In a special discussion segment with RTM last night, Maszlee said the freedom for the tertiary education community to express their opinions was stifled due to political interference from the previous administration.
“A siege mentality was created among students and university staff as the past administration have a total grip on them.
“So much so, that the students, professors and lecturers were afraid to speak their mind. The use of draconian laws, such as the Sedition Act 1948 and the AUKU Act (Universities and University Colleges Act 1971), made the situation worse,” he said.
Although such draconian laws still exist today, Maszlee is confident that universities will not enforce them.
“Pakatan Harapan (PH) had promised to get rid of, replace and amend some aspects of the (draconian) law,” he said, adding that the country already has laws to deal with those who pose a threat to national security.
“We have the facilities to support more intellectual discourse and places, such as the speakers’ corner for students to air their opinions.
“Universities should be viewed as places of open intellectualism. The freedom is there and now it is up to them to change their mentality,” he said.
