Chris Chong highlights the Malaysian Bar’s recent march for peace and freedom in the wake of the sedition crackdown.
The recent anti-sedition dragnet by the government has witnessed a vigorous response from many quarters of civil society in opposition to the Sedition Act (a colonial legal relic inherited from the British).
The latest group calling for the repeal of this unjust law is the Bar.
On 16 October 2014, the Bar Council organised a “Walk for Freedom and Peace 2014”. Some 2500 concerned Malaysians marched to Parliament to hand over a memorandum to the Prime Minister to abolish the Sedition Act. Those marching included not only lawyers but also members of NGO activists and interested individuals.
The event drew the attention of the international legal fraternity from the Commonwealth countries but also from Germany and South Korea which not only lent their moral support for the event but also called upon the government to repeal the act. You can read the press statements of these legal associations on the Bar Council‘s website.
Aliran president Dr Francis Loh, in his speech presented at the Aliran Dinner on 11 October 2014, presented his analysis of the current state of affairs in Malaysia which he framed as the interplay between New Politics and the reactionary Old Politics. You can read his speech here.
Finally, on a lighter note, Aliran has now gone digital with the distribution of our last printed copy (Vol. 33 No. 11/12). Although we have migrated to cyberspace, our dedication to the cause of freedom, justice and solidarity remains unchanged. As we complete our full transition to the digital world, we hope you will continue to support Aliran by visiting our homepage at aliran.com.
In solidarity,
Chris Chong
Co-editor, e-Newsletter
24 October 2014
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