Deputy Home Minister Chor Chee Heung said in parliament today that DAP's 'No to 929' flyers which criticised Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad's declaration that Malaysia was an Islamic state did not contain any seditious statements.

However, he said the government was checking to see if the pamphlets breached other laws such as the Printing Presses and Publications Act.

"It's [been submitted] to the deputy attorney-general for further action," said Chor (photo) during the question-and-answer session.

The minister also warned that the Islamic state declaration should not be manipulated by political parties as it was a sensitive issue.

DAP had gone on an aggressive campaign nationwide to oppose Mahathir's Islamic state announcement.

Mahathir made the declaration at Gerakan's national delegates conference in Kuala Lumpur on Sept 29 last year, hence the slogan "No to 929".

DAP national chairperson Lim Kit Siang (photo) and 31 of his supporters were arrested by the police in Ipoh, Port Dickson, Bentong and Klang for distributing the flyers after launching the campaign in June.

According to the police, they were arrested for 'sedition' but no charges were filed. Leaflets from the campaign were also seized by the authorities.

Police action questioned

Chor was replying to a question by Tan Kok Wai (DAP-Kepong) who asked the minister to state why police confiscated DAP's 'No to 929' pamphlets and arrested party members who were distributing them in various areas over the past few months.

Later, Tan, who thanked Chor for his reply, asked the minister to state if the police were prejudiced in their action towards DAP leaders who were merely distributing the pamphlets to the public.

In his supplementary question, Tan also wanted Chor to acknowledge that the contents of the pamphlets were "true, constructive and genuine" as they defended the 1957 Federal Constitution, which states that Malaysia is a secular and democratic state.

"What is stated in the pamphlets against the Islamic state is a valid concern as Mahathir's declaration that Malaysia was already an Islamic state does not augur well for the country's development," he said.

"Please tell us why our various attempts to see the Inspector General of Police (Norian Mai) concerning the arrests were not entertained at all. Will the police apologise to DAP leaders for their actions?" he queried.

Police did the right thing

In response, Chor defended the police for carrying out their duty to ensure peace and security.

"If [political] leaders are not responsible, it is the responsibility of the police to prevent a breach of peace, so they arrest them first," he said.

Chor said that DAP's campaign, if allowed to progress, may incite the public to take action, and this was why the police had to act.

"This applies to all religions, not only to one religion. So the question of apology does not apply," he stressed.

Meanwhile, Raja Ahmad Raja Zainuddin (BN-Larut) asked Chor if the government was planning to take further action against Lim and his opposition DAP.

To which Chor reiterated that Lim and DAP's action did not amount to sedition although if given the opportunity it might "develop" into such an issue.

"The government is monitoring the situation closely," he added.