The Anti-Fake News Bill 2018 was passed by the Dewan Rakyat on Monday, with 123 votes in favour to 64 votes against. A total of 33 MPs were absent while two others in the 222-member House are deceased.

The bill, which provides up to six years imprisonment and RM500,000 fine for publishing "fake news" is controversial due to the concerns that it can be abused to curb freedom of speech.

The bill will also allow the government to order the removal of articles that cannot be challenged if done on grounds of public order or national security.

Amid the government branding various developments about the 1MDB scandal, which is the subject of international investigations, as "fake news", there is worry about who will define what is fake news or not.

The government, during the debate in Parliament, repeatedly said it is the courts that will decide but critics argue that with a pliant judiciary, this does not inspire confidence.

As this is a significant piece of legislation that will affect the fundamental liberties of Malaysians, Malaysiakini compiled the voting record of how MPs from both sides of the divide voted, as well as those who did not vote.

This voting record is based on the second reading, where the opposition had requested for a bloc vote. There was no bloc vote during the third reading, which was approved through a voice vote.

A voice vote is normally done when government MPs greatly outnumber the opposition and the Dewan Rakyat speaker will simply decide based on whichever side has more MPs saying "aye".

However, the opposition sometimes requests for a bloc vote, which requires the individual vote of every MP to be taken down. This is to put things on record.

Unlike many developed democracies, the Dewan Rakyat voting record is not immediately available, making it difficult for the public to keep their MPs accountable.

The voting record is only made available through documents distributed to the respective MPs after the Parliament session is over. but since 2015, MPs have complained that this practice has also stopped.

With the help of observations from various MPs during the bloc vote, and verified by the respective party whips and senior officials, Malaysiakini put together here a voting record for the Anti-Fake News Bill 2018.

 

 

 

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