Solidariti Mahasiswa Malaysia (SMM) media secretary Ahmad Shukri Kamarudin is being investigated under the Sedition Act for allegedly making comments insulting to the Johor sultan on Twitter.

At 11am yesterday, around 10 police personnel from the Johor police headquarters visited Ahmad Shukri at his office to record his statement on the matter.

solidariti mahasiswa malaysia pc at kl court complex 130810 ahmad syukri kamarudin 01

They were apparently acting on a police report from NGO Pertubuhan Penyatuan Pembelaan Melayu Malaysia (PPPMM), and came with a warrant to search the premises.

The police also confiscated his phone and informed him that he was being accused under Section 4(1)(b) of the Sedition Act, said Ahmad Shukri (right) in a brief statement yesterday.

According to SMM, he had made comments relating to posts made by blogger Uncleseekers regarding the Johor sultan. 

When contacted by Malaysiakini , Ahmad Shukri said the police could not specify the supposedly offending posts he had made.

This, he said, was because the police report lodged by PPPMM did not single out the posts, and so the police will have to conduct their investigation to verify if there were such offences.

The police turned up at his office without prior notice, but were professional in conducting their search, according to Ahmad Shukri.

The police action came a day after Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak announced the repeal of the Sedition Act and its replacement with the National Harmony Act.

SMM came to Ahmad Shukri’s defence today, charging that his freedom to express his views was guaranteed under Article 10 of the federal constitution.

“This is the reality in our country where even just a vocal student is considered a threat to national security and peace.

muhammad safwan anang launch police report 050112 safwan anang 02 “It is a different story with the ‘big sharks’ who speak out and are not reprimanded, compared to the students who are constantly persecuted by laws that restrict their freedom of speech,” said SMM chairperson Safwan Anang ( left ) in a press release today.

He also expressed scepticism over the announced repeal of the Sedition Act, saying that SMM was fed-up with the government’s “sweet promises”.

The National Harmony Act will no doubt be an “important chapter” in the ruling politicians’ careers, but students remain confused over the ruling party’s promises, he said.

“It appears that they are only good at making rhetorical promises, and the rakyat will evaluate them based on what they have done,” he said.

Blogger Syed Abdullah Hussein Al-Attas, better known by his blog name Uncleseekers, was re-arrested by police yesterday over postings on his blog www.uncleseekers.blogspot.com that were alleged to be defamatory of the Sultan of Johor, Sultan Ibrahim.

This followed his first arrest under the Official Secrets Act last week, after some 30 individuals lodged a report against him for his posts concerning the heritage of the late Sultan Iskandar ibni Almarhum Sultan Ismail of Johor.

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