Whip of dissent: Waytha condemns arrest over PM effigy flogging

Flogging an effigy of Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim may offend some sensibilities, but it is no crime deserving of arrest, argued Malaysian Advancement Party (MAP) president P Waythamoorthy.

He condemned the authorities’ heavy-handed response, calling it a blatant abuse of state power, deploying handcuffs and slapping sedition charges to suppress a provocative yet peaceful act of political expression.

Waythamoorthy (above) further described it as a direct attack on the freedom of expression that Anwar has so often claimed to uphold.

“What message does this send to the rakyat? That criticism of the prime minister will be met not with dialogue or debate, but with police knocking at your door?” he added.

On Monday, Bersatu’s Badrul Hisham Shaharin - better known as Chegubard - was arrested under the Sedition Act over the flogging incident during last Saturday’s “Turun Anwar” rally.

Following his release, Badrul told reporters that police had questioned him over the effigy-flogging. In response, he said: “I flogged the effigy because I could not flog the real Anwar. If I could flog the real Anwar, I would not have flogged the effigy.”

Prior to his arrest, Badrul posted on social media that he was being investigated under Section 4(1) of the Sedition Act 1948 for acts with seditious tendency; Section 233 of the Communications and Multimedia Act 1998 for improper use of network facilities; and Section 504 of the Penal Code for intentional insult with intent to provoke a breach of the peace.

Badrul also revealed he was being probed under Section 14 of the Minor Offences Act 1955 for using indecent, threatening, abusive, or insulting words or behaviour likely to cause a breach of the peace.

Dangerous signs

In his statement, Waythamoorthy claimed Badrul’s arrest was yet another example of Anwar’s administration using the police as a tool of intimidation.

“The use of colonial-era laws such as the Sedition Act and Section 504 of the Penal Code to suppress peaceful protests is not just outdated, it is dangerous. It signals a government that says one thing about democracy and transparency, but does another the moment it is challenged.

“If the government truly respects freedom of assembly and freedom of speech, then why are peaceful protesters being hunted down and arrested days after the fact?

“This contradiction exposes the hypocrisy at the heart of this administration’s so-called reform agenda,” he added.

Waythamoorthy said MAP supports Amnesty International Malaysia’s call for the repeal of all laws that criminalise peaceful expression, and for law enforcement to protect - not violate - the rights of the people.

“This government was elected on the promise of reform. Yet, what we are witnessing is regression: fear over freedom, power over principle. The rakyat will not and should not be silenced. Dissent is not a crime,” he stressed.

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