Utusan article not seditious, says deputy home minister
Leong Kar YenPublished: Dec 7, 2000 11:46 PM | Updated: Jan 29, 2008 10:21 AM
An article in a local Malay daily which questioned if Malaysians of Chinese ethnicity could still be trusted in lieu of Barisan Nasional's loss in the Lunas by-election last Wednesday was not seditious, Deputy Home Affairs Minister Zainal Abidin Zin said today.
"The words 'Chinese voters cannot be trusted' are not seditious," he told malaysiakini at the Parliament lobby.
He explained that saying somebody could not be trusted was a general term and should not be construed as being seditious.
Zainal said, "For example, I can say, 'You cannot be trusted' but that is not seditious."
The article by Utusan Malaysia's Rozaman Ismail on Dec 1, referring to the Barisan Alternatif victory in Lunas, had said: "Is it true that the Chinese voters in the country cannot be trusted anymore? Going by the figures polled by BN and BA, particularly in Chinese-majority areas, the most accurate answer would be 'yes'."
DAP chairman Lim Kit Siang on Friday said Utusan Malaysia should apologise for the "inflammatory and unwarranted attack on the Chinese community" in the article, which was entitled "Politik orang Cina di Lunas" (Politics of the Chinese in Lunas). ([#1]Utusan slammed for 'inflammatory' article[/#], Dec 1)
Anger and frustration
When malaysiakini pointed out that an ethnic group was targeted in the article, Zainal replied that the matter only concerned Lunas.
"It is specifically for Lunas. 'Chinese voters cannot be trusted' by whom? Trusted by BN, trusted by anybody? It is a very general statement. I don't think all the Chinese are against BN, only a few," he said.
"This is a general statement made out of anger, frustration and dissatisfaction. It is not dangerous and I don't think it is seditious.
"You can see a lot of statements saying that the Malays cannot be trusted, the Indians cannot be trusted during the elections and after the elections. It is normal."
No blackout
When asked about the Home Affairs Ministry's directive to the Chinese press not to highlight issues on the Chang Ming Thien Fund and the Vision School programme prior to the by-election, Zainal said that it was not an order but more like 'advice' ([#2]Ministry warns Chinese dailies[/#], Nov 17).
"No, it was not a directive to blackout such news, it was only advice. It is how you express the news, whether you instigate and provoke. If the provocation is expressed openly and we think it is quite dangerous, we will advise," Zainal said.
"But if you write a story with a motive to provoke, to create anger, dissatisfaction and uneasiness instead of creating awareness to be with the government, we will advise against it," he added.
"The words 'Chinese voters cannot be trusted' are not seditious," he told malaysiakini at the Parliament lobby.
He explained that saying somebody could not be trusted was a general term and should not be construed as being seditious.
Zainal said, "For example, I can say, 'You cannot be trusted' but that is not seditious."
The article by Utusan Malaysia's Rozaman Ismail on Dec 1, referring to the Barisan Alternatif victory in Lunas, had said: "Is it true that the Chinese voters in the country cannot be trusted anymore? Going by the figures polled by BN and BA, particularly in Chinese-majority areas, the most accurate answer would be 'yes'."
DAP chairman Lim Kit Siang on Friday said Utusan Malaysia should apologise for the "inflammatory and unwarranted attack on the Chinese community" in the article, which was entitled "Politik orang Cina di Lunas" (Politics of the Chinese in Lunas). ([#1]Utusan slammed for 'inflammatory' article[/#], Dec 1)
Anger and frustration
When malaysiakini pointed out that an ethnic group was targeted in the article, Zainal replied that the matter only concerned Lunas.
"It is specifically for Lunas. 'Chinese voters cannot be trusted' by whom? Trusted by BN, trusted by anybody? It is a very general statement. I don't think all the Chinese are against BN, only a few," he said.
"This is a general statement made out of anger, frustration and dissatisfaction. It is not dangerous and I don't think it is seditious.
"You can see a lot of statements saying that the Malays cannot be trusted, the Indians cannot be trusted during the elections and after the elections. It is normal."
No blackout
When asked about the Home Affairs Ministry's directive to the Chinese press not to highlight issues on the Chang Ming Thien Fund and the Vision School programme prior to the by-election, Zainal said that it was not an order but more like 'advice' ([#2]Ministry warns Chinese dailies[/#], Nov 17).
"No, it was not a directive to blackout such news, it was only advice. It is how you express the news, whether you instigate and provoke. If the provocation is expressed openly and we think it is quite dangerous, we will advise," Zainal said.
"But if you write a story with a motive to provoke, to create anger, dissatisfaction and uneasiness instead of creating awareness to be with the government, we will advise against it," he added.
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