-Dr Azmi Sharom
Rakyat Times
30 March 2015

The IGP, Khalid Abu Bakar, (probably the most Twitter-savvy chief of police in the world) had this to say recently (as reported in an online news portal):

“We respected freedom of expression and speech but we will not tolerate the freedom to incite and disrespected the system under the federal constitution.”

The IGP also said, “This we cannot compromise. Any gathering or activities that is seditious we will take action on.”

I guess this is why the police have been on an arrest frenzy, locking up opposition politicians and activists. Anyway, I want to say ‘thank you’ to the IGP. Since he says he respects freedom of expression, I am sure he won’t mind me exercising my freedom of expression to ask him (in a non-inciting fashion) a few questions….

Alright then – my questions are as follows:

Exactly what were the people arrested inciting? Violence? If so, where is the evidence?

I thought all they were doing was trying to organise a peaceful assembly.

Is that seditious?

If assembling and marching peaceably are not seditious, then what exactly was said and done that is seditious? Can our IGP share with us? If he doesn’t have the time, perhaps he can just tweet what it was that is so seditious.

And why do the police treat opposition politicians and activists so differently from BN politicians and supporters who say blatantly racist things, have ‘illegal’ assemblies and threaten people with actual harm? Is there an SOP for this sort of difference in treatment?

And finally, I just love the way the IGP says “we respect human rights”, but in the same breath says they will clamp down against these without any sort of real justification.

Hello! Our rights are ours. We don’t have to justify them. The authorities with the power, however, have to justify any action taken which infringes upon our rights. And the IGP has done no such thing. Vague statements about incitement and sedition do not cut it.

I sure hope he reads the Rakyat Times. Can someone tweet him this article, please?

Cheers!