The All Women's Action Society (Awam) notes with great sadness and concern the recent e-mail being circulated threatening the life of Malik Imtiaz Sarwar, an advocate and solicitor of the High Court of Malaya, the president of the National Human Rights Society (Hakam), the secretary of the pro-tem committee of the Malaysian Civil Liberties Society (MCLS), and a highly respected advocate of human rights.

Discussions on some of our constitutional rights by certain parties have been much curtailed of late not simply by government intervention, but also by the use and threat of violence by sections of civil society. Article 10 of the Federal Constitution states that every citizen has the right to freedom of speech and expression. However, along with those rights must come safe spaces wherein those rights may be exercised.

For example, we observe with dismay that the Badan Anti-IFC (Badai), which participated in the disruptions to the Article 11 forum in Penang, did not restrict itself to belligerent protest on that day itself. Article 11 members have had to lodge police reports over threats of violence from Badai. Violence, in fact, has been a prominent feature in the protests in Penang and Johor Baru three of the Penang protestors have been charged in court.

What is perhaps even more saddening are the deliberate inaccuracies and false information prevalent in the attacks against the work of Article 11, and the members of Article 11. For example, Imtiaz is not the counsel for Lina Joy he held a watching brief on behalf of the Bar Council. Furthermore, he was submitting on broader issues of constitutional and human rights, neither of which can be reasonably construed as an attack on Islam.

Awam is concerned at the way violence and the threat of violence is becoming increasingly commonplace as a tactic to silence citizens engaged in advocacy or who are speaking out. The state has a responsibility to help stop this regressive development and to educate the people on why this is unacceptable, given our constitutional commitment to the freedom of expression.

Much has been said on the 'limits' of our constitutional right to freedom of speech, but it would seem that many have allowed knee-jerk prejudice and ingrained paranoia to inform their response to various issues instead of understanding what the Federal Constitution actually says.

One of the markers of a civilised society is its capacity to facilitate open, violence-free spaces for discussion and dissent; especially in the context of today's world, where the protection of human rights defenders has become a critical global issue. Malaysia should be at the forefront of this campaign as a member of the United Nations and its Human Rights Council - not keeping silent on matters within its own borders.

Awam is grateful for the chorus of opposition to the death threat against Imtiaz from proponents and opponents of Article 11 alike. However, against this backdrop, the silence on the part of the government becomes even more worrisome.

The writer is executive director, All Women's Action Society (Awam).