Malaysia
Malaysian Prime Minister Promises to Abolish Security Laws and Publications ActPosted Sep 21 2011
The Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak's has announced in a televised speech on Sept. 15 that he is repealing the country’s two controversial security laws — the Internal Security Act and the Emergency Ordinance, which allows for indefinite detention without trial, according to a Reuters article.
The laws are expected to be replaced by two new laws that would be used mainly against suspected militants, according to the Reuters article. Also, Najib has vowed to abolish the Printing Presses and Publications Act so that media outlets would have to be approved only once for permission to publish, rather than having outlets apply annually for license renewal, according to a Guardian article.
The announcement comes two months after one the biggest political rallies the country has experienced. Police arrested 1,400 people out of the 20,000 protesters who marched for electoral reforms in the capital, Kuala Lumpur.
While the laws are being labeled by Amnesty International as important steps for human rights in Malaysia, the announcement to abolish the security laws is also cautiously regarded as an attempt to boost support before elections, according to the Guardian article.
Some analysts consider this promise as “political expediency,” a term used by Bridget Welsh, an expert on Malaysian politics, who said that Najib acted because of pressure from the opposition on all sides, the Guardian article said. According to the article, Najib said he believed that good things can come from political expediency.
Najib's promise of legal reforms must still be approved by the legislature. Najib’s ruling United Malays National Organization (UMNO) party dominates. According to the Committee to Protect Journalists, whether the vows can make a difference in the freedom of media remains to be seen, according to the Committee to Protect Journalists.