Malaysian blogger charged with sedition

Discussion in 'General Chat' started by sabmark, May 6, 2008.

  1. #1
    Agence France-Presse
    First Posted 17:54:00 05/06/2008
    http://technology.inquirer.net/info...34940/Malaysian-blogger-charged-with-sedition

    KUALA LUMPUR -- A Malaysian blogger was charged Tuesday with sedition over an article he wrote linking a top government leader and his wife to the gruesome killing of a Mongolian woman.

    Raja Petra Kamaruddin, founder and editor of the popular Malaysia Today site, had posted an article which allegedly implicated Deputy Prime Minister Najib Razak and his wife, Rosmah Mansor, in the October 2006 murder.

    The 57-year old Raja Petra pleaded not guilty after the charge was read out to him over the article, which prosecutors say contained "sentences deemed seditious."

    "We bloggers have declared war on the government. Our final objective is to change the government," Raja Petra declared before he was charged.

    Supporters, including opposition lawmakers and other bloggers, thronged the court in a show of support.

    Represented by seven lawyers, a defiant Raja Petra declined to post the 5,000 ringgit bail (1,600 US dollars) set by judge Nurmala Salim, preferring to be jailed until his October 6 trial date.

    "I am not going to post bail. I don't have the money," Raja Petra told reporters in the courtroom.

    "I'll be out for Christmas. Don't worry," he added, after hugging his tearful wife and close friends.

    If convicted, he faces a three-year jail term or a fine of up to 5,000 ringgit.

    The high-profile killing of the 28-year-old Mongolian woman, Altantuya Shaariibuu -- whose body was blown up with explosives -- has been splashed across newspapers covering the murder trial, which began last June.

    Najib, who is expected to take over from Prime Minister Abdullah Ahamad Badawi as the country's next premier, has denied any involvement in her death.

    Two police officers from the Special Action Force (UTK), whose duties included guarding Malaysia's prime minister and Najib, were charged with the killing.

    Prosecutors claim analyst Abdul Razak Baginda, who has links with Najib and top government leaders, ordered the guards to kill Altantuya -- his former lover -- after she kept harassing him for money.

    Abdul Razak has been charged with abetting the killing.

    Malaysia's Sedition Act, a carryover from British colonial times, broadly criminalizes activities with "seditious tendencies," including those that express anti-government sentiments.

    Businessman Syed Akbar Ali was also charged Tuesday under the Sedition Act for posting a comment on Raja Petra's blog.

    Who's agreeing with this statement?
     
    sabmark, May 6, 2008 IP
  2. atulperx

    atulperx Banned

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    #2
    hahah first i think we should change our ip address than comment with some fake id , such comments can make troubles believe me . But yes it is true that bloggers don't know the real power of blogging and their should be one big community where bloggers can files cases and upload new newses which can be shared on all blogs .This method can create big problems for cheaters and bad guys .
     
    atulperx, May 6, 2008 IP
  3. w3bmaster

    w3bmaster Notable Member

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    #3
    This is funny to me :)
     
    w3bmaster, May 6, 2008 IP
  4. hbuilder

    hbuilder Peon

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    #4
    Raja petra(the blogger) has his point and evidence.
     
    hbuilder, May 28, 2008 IP
  5. eugenef_1

    eugenef_1 Peon

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    #5
    guess bloggers are seen on the same level of newspapers....
     
    eugenef_1, May 28, 2008 IP
  6. allnightlong

    allnightlong Banned

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    #6
    Well i heard malaysian government is pretty lame, not the first time such news appeared. Bloggers do have high authority.
     
    allnightlong, May 28, 2008 IP
  7. Ibn Juferi

    Ibn Juferi Prominent Member

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    #7
    Hes not a blogger, hes a news portal webmaster.
     
    Ibn Juferi, May 28, 2008 IP