Over the last month or so, various opposition leaders and other personalities linked to the opposition have been dragged into court on charges of sedition. It is expected that more people will be rounded up for the same "offence" in the very near future.

But what is sedition? Sedition has been loosely described as "any act, speech or publication that has a tendency to produce feelings of ill will and enmity between different races".

Subject matters that come under this "restriction" are those related to rights of citizenship, Malay special rights and privileges, the status and powers of the Malay Rulers, the status of Islam as the official religion of the country, and the status of the Malay language as the national language.

Basically, if any "discussion" of the above matters can cause the various races to go into conflict, then it becomes a crime. This, in a way, removes our freedom to even touch upon any of these issues. The matter, as they say, is not open for discussion.

This also gives full authority to the powers-that-be to decide what act, statement or publication constitutes sedition. You may have said or done something very innocent or harmless that never even bated an eyelid.

However, if someone of authority is of the personal view that your statement or action could have made someone unhappy - even though no one may have complained - then he has the full authority to declare your statement or act seditious. That's how wide his powers are and it is basically your argument against his.

So what is it that Marina Yusof, Karpal Singh, Zulkifli Sulong or Chea Lim Thye said or wrote that warrants sedition charges being brought against them? All they did was tell the truth.

Is this the message the government is trying to send down to the people? Tell the truth and end up in jail. However, if you lie and if that lie favours the government, then nothing is going to happen to you.

Come to think of it, who was the person who was making countless seditious statements in the run-up to the 10th general elections?

Wasn't it Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad who warned the public that the 10th general elections was going to be the dirtiest in the history of this nation? Wasn't it Mahathir who warned the public that the opposition was going to lose the elections although it was still a few weeks until polling day and votes had not even been cast, let alone counted?

Wasn't it Mahathir who warned the public that once the opposition found out it had lost the elections that there would be rioting on the streets of KL?

Wasn't it the Umno-owned and controlled media that ran advertisements warning people of impending racial riots?

Wasn't it the Umno-owned and controlled media that created an impression of a May 13 about to re-occur?

Wasn't it the Umno-owned and controlled media that warned Chinese that a vote for DAP or KeADILan would mean a vote for PAS, and therefore a vote for Islam?

Wasn't it the Umno-owned and controlled media that warned non-Muslims that a strong opposition would open the country to the danger of Islamic laws being implemented?

Wasn't it the Umno-owned and controlled media that warned Malays that if the opposition won this would be the end of Malay rights and privileges?

Yes, many seditious statements were made during those few weeks leading up to the last general elections. The guilty parties, however, were the Prime Minister, Deputy Prime Minister, and the Umno-owned and controlled media.

Yes, action must be brought against all those guilty of sedition. Action must be brought against the Prime Minister, the Deputy Prime Minister, Umno, Utusan Malaysia, Berita Harian, The New Straits Times, The Star, The Sun, TV3, RTM, NTV 7, and all those editors and owners.

RAJA PETRA KAMARUDIN wrote a cycling column for The Star's Weekender for more than six years. He had been politically active both in PAS and Umno. Raja Petra is currently the coordinator of the media department in KeADILan.