Originally enacted as the Sedition Ordinance 1948 by British colonial authorities, the law was targeted at anti-colonial activists and aimed to restrict their activities against the British government. Following independence, the Ordinance was reformulated into an Act. Under Article (3) (1) “Sedition” itself is not defined in the Act, instead a “seditious tendency” is deemed to be a “tendency” to: (a) “bring into hatred or contempt or to excite disaffection against any Ruler or against any Government”; (b) “to excite the subjects of any Ruler or the inhabitants of any territory governed by any Government to attempt to procure in the territory of the Ruler or governed by the Government, the alteration, otherwise than by lawful means, of any matter as by law established [which also includes secession]; (c) “to bring into hatred or contempt or excite disaffection against the administration of justice in Malaysia or in any State”; (d) “to raise discontent or disaffection” amongst the population; (e) “to promote feelings of ill will and hostility between different races or classes of the population of Malaysia”; (f) “to question any matter, right, status, position, privilege, sovereignty or prerogative” related to the Malay language as the national language, the special privileges accorded to ethnic Malays and Natives of Sabah and Sarawak (otherwise known as Bumiputera), and the sovereignty of the Rulers. Under section 4(1) any person who (a) does or attempts to do, or makes any preparation to do, or conspires with any person to do, any act which has or which would, if done, have a seditious tendency; (b) utters any seditious words; (c) prints, publishes, sells, offers for sale, distributes or reproduces any seditious publication; or (d) imports any seditious publication, shall be guilty of an offence Those found guilty could face, for the first offence, up to three years imprisonment and/ or a fine not exceeding RM5,000 (USD1,130), and for subsequent offences, five years imprisonment. The right to freedom of opinion and expression is enshrined in Article 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. This right includes the “freedom to hold opinions without interference” and to “seek, receive and impart information and ideas through any media and regardless of frontiers”. Although international human rights law does permit certain restrictions on freedom of expression, these restrictions must meet a strict three-part test: they must be provided by law; be limited to specified purposes such as national security, public order or respect of the rights or reputation of others; and be necessary and proportionate to the achievement of one of those permissible purposes. Any restrictions imposed which do not meet all elements of this “three-part test” constitute violations of the right. The restrictions on the right to freedom of expression imposed in Malaysia’s Sedition Act are phrased in an excessively broad and vague manner, potentially resulting in both an overreach of the law and potential for abusive application of the law. In fact, exciting “disaffection against any Ruler or against any Government”, in itself should not be criminalized at all. Malaysia’s Sedition Act does not comply with international human rights law and standards, and additionally, violates the rights to freedom of expression as guaranteed in Malaysia’s Constitution. CRITICAL CRACKDOWN: FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION UNDER ATTACK IN MALAYSIA 11