Press Statement
18 July 2008
Raja Petra’s criminal defamation: The AG’s Chambers cannot be both the complainant and prosecutor
I wish to express my extreme concern regarding the criminal defamation charge of Raja Petra Kamaruddin, prominent webmaster of news portal Malaysia Today on 17 July 2008. The charge arose from Raja Petra’s statutory declaration which stated among others that Deputy Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak’ wife Rosmah Mansor was involved in the murder of Mongolian national Altantuya Shaariibuu. In May, Raja Petra was charged with sedition for making similar accusations in an article which he wrote on the website.
This criminal defamation charge which carries a punishment of up to 2 years’ imprisonment is clearly another attempt to intimidate and quell dissidents and government critics like Raja Petra from exposing the wrong doings and criminal activities of high level government officials and their family members. Criminal defamation is an archaic and odious law, a relic from the British Empire. This offence no longer exists or at least had fallen into disuse in many modern and democratic states.
Rosmah has already said that she does not wish to take any action against Raja Petra. Therefore, I am extremely appalled to discover that the AG’s Chambers seemed to have acted as the complainant in this case and have taken this highly questionable recourse of criminal prosecution when there appeared to have been no police report lodged by any of the aggrieved parties. Even if Rosmah or anyone else are aggrieved, the proper recourse is for them to file a civil defamation suit. The state machinery has no place is such disputes.
Further, the Attorney General himself is currently under investigation by the ACA for serious allegations of fabricating and suppressing evidence in the assault of Anwar Ibrahim by former IGP Rahim Noor. This calls for his immediate suspension pending the outcome of the ACA investigation and he certainly should not be involved in any further questionable prosecutions.
I would like to remind the Attorney General that the AG’s Chambers is a public institution and not a personal arm of the government or high level officials to be misused for political intimidation and attack against opponents. The AG’s Chambers has fallen into serious disrepute over the last 2 decades with well founded accusations of selective and politically motivated prosecutions.
I therefore object in the strongest terms the continuing misuse of the AG’s Chambers and demand the immediate withdrawal of the criminal charges against Raja Petra.(end)
Salehuddin Hashim
Secretary General
Parti Keadilan Rakyat
