The government is tabling amendments to the Sedition Act in the Dewan Rakyat today, with heavier punishments expected to be meted out to offenders.

A maximum jail sentence of 20 years and no bail for those charged are among the steps taken to fortify the existing law.

“The new Section 5A provides that where a person is charged with an offence under subsection 4(1A) and there is a certificate in writing by the public prosecutor stating that it is not in the public interest to grant bail to the person charged, the person shall not be released on bail,” the bill reads.

Another amendment to the bill is “higher punishment meted for sedition offences involving bodily injury and damage to property”, with the fine removed and a minimum jail term of of five years proposed.

“A minimum penalty of five years' imprisonment and a maximum penalty of 20 years' imprisonment will be imposed in consideration of the seriousness of the offence,” the bill states.

The amendment bill will not also have fines for minor offences and offenders will serve a minimum sentence of three years’ imprisonment.

“The amendment to subsection 4(1) seeks to substitute the current penalty for offences under subsection 4(1) with a minimum penalty of three years’ imprisonment a maximum penalty of seven years and to do away with the penalty of fine.”

Other amendments to the law include the addition of secession and religion, also to be defined under the Act.

This amendment comes after Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak ( left ) backpedalled on his promise to repeal the Sedition Act in 2012 and instead announced at the last Umno general assembly that the Act would be fortified .

“This is in line with the intention of the government to protect the sanctity of religions professed by multi-religious society in Malaysia. An act of insulting and ridiculing any religion may cause disharmony and threaten public order,” the amendment bill reads.

The bill also clarifies the position of Islam in the countr,y where the law strictly refers to  “hukum syarak”, or Islamic teachings which are “codified under any written law”, and does not include “deviant teachings”.

Secession, on the other hand is defined by adding an illustration to the existing Section 3(b) of the Act.

“A excites a person or a group of persons to demand for the secession of State B from Malaysia. Such act is seditious,” the illustration states.  

The bill also states that criticism of the new amendment, with the intention of creating a “transparent and accountable administration”, will be allowed.

“This amendment is in line with the intention of the government to be more open, whereby the public is at liberty to give feedback or criticise the government so as to create a transparent and accountable administration in Malaysia,” the bill states.