Books on sedition law should include 2015 amendment to prevent public confusion on 3R offences, says ex-IGP Musa Hassan 

KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 8 — The government needs to take immediate steps to educate Malaysians about what is counted as seditious offences, Tan Sri Musa Hassan said today amid the recent spate of arrests and investigations on those who talk about race, religion and the royal institution dubbed the 3Rs.

The retired inspector-general of police said the public is confused because the published books on the Sedition Act on sale now do not contain changes to the controversial law made in 2015, Harian Metro reported this morning.

“I believe the Sedition Act 1948 (Amendment 2015) was approved by the King on May 28, 2015 and published in the Gazette on June 4, 2015,” he was quoted as saying.

He pointed out that the amendments are enforceable starting from the gazette date.

“However, when I found the copy of the Sedition Act 1948 (until 25 April 2022), it did not contain the 2015 amendment, the question arose as to whether the police investigation related to the current 3Rs issue which uses the Sedition Act 1948 is still using the old Act (before the amendment) or the new Act which amended in 2015?” he was quoted as saying.

Musa said the book copy of the Sedition Act 1948 he got from the bookstore was published by the International Law Book Services (ILBS) and produced on April 25, 2002.

He said this batch still contains provisions that had been abolished in 2015, and as such, were not up to date, resulting in public confusion.

To support his remarks, he gave two examples.

Before the 2015 amendment, it was an offence to incite hatred against the government under Section 3(1)(a).

Another offence was to incite hatred towards the administration of the justice system in Malaysia under Section 3(1)(c).

“So I wonder why this important statute published by ILBS and sold to the public still does not adopt the 2015 amendment made.

“I call on the government through the law minister to immediately address the public's confusion regarding the application of the Sedition Act 1948,” he was quoted as saying.

Musa also said he agreed with the majority of Malaysians that the issues related to 3R should not be arbitrarily spoken in a tone that could threaten the peace between races.

“When I served in the police force, this issue remained as one of the priorities for the police to control, so that it does not spread into a problem that could threaten national security,” he was quoted as saying.

Musa added that he was among those who had opposed the suggestion by some parties seeking to repeal the Sedition Act 1948 back in 2014.

“I feel that the Sedition Act 1948 is still relevant to control speech that has a tendency to incite, including the 3R issue,” he was quoted as saying.