Police issue warning to groups over Muslim preacher video clip protest
The police today warned groups protesting over a video clip of an individual allegedly making remarks insulting a religion or making provocative racist remarks, Bernama reported.
In an apparent reference to the protest by MIC Youth and several other non-governmental organisations (NGOs) in Kuala Lumpur today, assistant chief of the Inspector-General of Police Secretariat (Corporate Communications), ACP Datin Asmawati Ahmad, said the police had not received any notice for assemblies and, as such, action could be taken against the organisers of the gatherings under the Peaceful Assembly Act 2012.
"The police advice to those unhappy with the circulation of the issue (video clip) is to make a police report and not to resort to using social media to insult or condemn the individual or doing anything unlawful," she was quoted as saying by Bernama.
MIC Youth and the NGOs organised a protest in Brickfields today urging authorities to take action against a Muslim preacher who was recorded on video insulting Hinduism. Their ire was aimed at Ustaz Shahul Hamid Seeni Mohd (pic) who had allegedly insulted the Hindu religion during a speech at a forum in Shah Alam in February.
The police also appealed to all speakers at various talks, especially those involving the topic of religion, to exercise caution and wisdom so that their message did not undermine racial harmony and touch on racial and religious sensitivities.
Asmawati said that such talks were a medium to call for doing good and should not be manipulated by anyone to disrupt the racial and religous harmony in the country.
According to Bernama, Asmawati added that anyone attempting to or engaging in any act that was tantamount to inciting or instigating could be prosecuted under Section 4(1) of the Sedition Act.
The penalty is a fine of up to RM5,000 or a maximum jail term of three years, or both, upon conviction for the first offence. For the second and subsequent offences, the individual could be sentenced to a maximum of five years jail, she added. – July 30, 2014.
