Malaysia is no longer a free and independent state. It may have the operations of a free state but the citizens are actually slaves to a government that is hell-bent on passing restrictive legislation that serves only to further their ill-intentioned motives. Within the past month we have seen the Peaceful Assembly Bill 2011 approved and the Computing Professionals Bill 2011 already in draft format. By comparison, a Bill to protect abused victims took 6 years to make its rounds in Parliament. Why is it that 'good' Bills are delayed while 'evil' ones are rammed through at lightning speed?
It is also laughable that Prime Minister Najib Razak continues to boast about the progress made by Talent Corp, a national agency created to persuade the Malaysian diaspora to return home to invest and work for a better Malaysia. Either he is stupid or they are stupid in not believing him and wanting to return.
Indeed, there does seem to be an evil motive behind the differing treatment given to various Bills that make their way to Parliament. And while the UMNO-BN government is at the helm, many more such laws can be expected to find their way through before the 13th General Election next year.
Incompetence and confusion
The rush to approve the Peaceful Assembly Bill 2011 has already produced fruit - the fruit of confusion among the various ministries tasked to implement it! It seems the government is very good at passing legislation but poor at implementing them.
The furore caused by the confusion over whether carolers need to apply for permits speaks volumes at the ambiguity and vagueness of Prime Minister Najib Razak's Peaceful Assembly Bill 2011. Yet, Najib made so bold as to call it a "revolutionaty" Bill and a "giant leap".
The fault lies in the term, “assembly in motion”. A large group of people, gathered for a common cause, that is in motion can very much mean that even a large group of Chinese shoppers clogging up Bukit Bintang area can be charged for disrupting the peace, and the rights of every other shopper that wants right of way!
This is how ambiguous this law is. What about funeral processions? And forget about hosting home-coming parades in Malaysia. All these things can be misinterpreted into this flawed law, which is actually intentional so as to give the Umno-BN absolute discretion over the freedom and rights of the people.
What the Constitution actually says
Does this not go contrary to various articles within the Federal Constitution?
Article 5. (1) No person shall be deprived of his life or personal liberty save in accordance with law.
Article 8. (1) All persons are equal before the law and entitled to the equal protection of the law.
Article 10. (1) Subject to Clauses (2), (3) and (4)— (a) every citizen has the right to freedom of speech and expression; (a) on the rights conferred by paragraph (a) of Clause (1), such restrictions as it deems necessary or expedient in the interest of the security of the Federation or any part thereof, friendly relations with other countries, public order or morality and restrictions designed to protect the privileges of Parliament or of any Legislative Assembly or to provide against contempt of court, defamation, or incitement to any offence;
How the BN broke the law
When the police moved in on the Bersih 2.0 supporters on July 9, they broke Article 8 (1) of the Federal Constitution. Protesters also have rights as citizens.
And when the government use the argument that the Peaceful Assembly Bill 2011 was to allow for public dissent, they contravened Article 5(1) by restricting the personal liberties accorded to all citizen.
But the biggest travesty of this bit of legislation was the abuse of Article 10. The government used the mechinism of law to restrict the right to freedom of speech and expression, which all Malaysians have access to. To an unprincipled government, this was a 'clever move', but it only underscores the unsuitability and irrelevance of the BN as a government for modern-day Malaysia.
If Najib is wondering why, after spending millions on Public Relations, and packaging repressive laws to sound right, is he still losing popularity, then this is the answer. Malaysians are not stupid. They know laws to protect the well-being of the general public is one thing, but it is downright evil to restrict all manner of liberties due and guaranteed to a citizen.
Ulterior motives and what would Bill Gates say?
The Computing Professionals Bill 2011 (CPA11) is even more ambiguous and vague in nature. For a bill that governs IT professionals, the wording of the law is simplistic and non-specific to a fault. Again, meant to give the Umno-BN full sway and discretion to decide what is right and what is wrong, totally on a whim-and-fancy situation.
Basically, the CPA11 provides for the establishment of the Board of Computing Professionals Malaysia and for the registration of computing practitioners, computing professionals, sole proprietor-ships, partnerships and bodies corporate providing computing services.
What gave rise to the idea to register and regulate computing professionals under an appraisal board is a mystery? If passed, this Bill will be the first in the world that compels computing professionals to be registered, appraised and confirmed by a board of professionals in order to be allowed to conduct their trade in IT projects that are considered Critical National Information Infrastructure (CNII).
The CPA11 defines the CNII as “Those assets, systems and functions that are vital to the nation that their incapacity or destruction would have a devastating impact on National economic strength or National image or National defence and security of Government Capability to function or Public Health and safety.”
In an interconnected world where IT forms the back-bone to any nation, the CNII definition practically covers all manner of IT works! Worse still, the CPA11 basically would discriminate between those who have professional credentials from those who do not.
People like Mark Zuckenberg and Bill Gates would not be able to conduct their development work for any IT project in Malaysia, because they do not have a degree to show for it. Smart or silly - let the citizens decide!
Indirect way to regulate the alternative e-media?
There is also speculation that the CPA11 is a cover for the BN to clamp down on the online and opposition media, using the far-ranging and awesomely discretionary scope of the law to get at the alternative e-press. At the rate the BN is going, soon even bloggers may have to reigister and seek approval before they can put up a page in cyberspace.
But the deeper problem with CPA11 is that it contravenes the Federal Constitution.
Article 8(2) states that: Except as expressly authorized by this Constitution, there shall be no discrimination against citizens on the ground only of religion, race, descent, place of birth or gender in any law or in the appointment to any office or employment under a public authority or in the administration of any law relating to the acquisition, holding or disposition of property or the establishing or carrying on of any trade, business, profession, vocation or employment.
The CPA11, in creating a divide among the IT professionals in Malaysia based on their qualifications, would create an environment of discrimination. The self-taught computer geek would not be able to carry on their trade, nor business or profession. This breaks the spirit of Article 8(2). Again, the mechanism of law is used to restrict and take away the constitutional right of the citizen.
Sudden rush
The sudden rush to legalise various new Bills is worrying. Over the months since the Malaysia Day announcement by Najib Razak that the ISA will be revoked and the Emergency Ordinances be removed, legislation after legislation is making its way to Parliament for approval. Why the sudden rush to get legislation through the Lower House?
There is a simple answer to this. Legislation is being passed at an alarming rate while the UMNO/BN government can still stand. It will not be so easy, after the 13th General Election. This is a safety measure, used by the Najib administration to ensure that when they lose their majority in Parliament, it will be hard for the opposition Pakatan Rakyat government to repeal them.
At an age where less legislation is needed, Malaysia is in a hurry to install more and to further shackle the hearts and minds of its people. No wonder, the country is on a threshold where a decrepit and proven-to-be-rotten system is about to be kicked out and a new dawn due to begin.
The only way to ever prevent themselves from falling into the crutches of such evil dictators is for Malaysians to stand up for their own rights and never allow themselves to the puppets of the politicians. The people are the boss, not the governments and this is the first thing Malaysians must set right if their country is not continue sliding into the bowels of bankruptcy and social doom.
Written by Maclean Patrick, Malaysia Chronicle
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