KUALA LUMPUR: Former de facto law minister Datuk Mohd Zaid Ibrahim has called for the Sedition Act to be repealed following inconsistencies in its application.
In a post on X, Zaid said there were inconsistencies in the application of the act in prosecuting individuals, commenting on the recent case where Wan Ji Wan Hussin, an independent preacher, was given a nine-month prison sentence after he insulted the Sultan of Selangor 10 years ago.
"Wan Ji is now serving nine months, having been found guilty of sedition where, 10 years ago, he suggested that the monarchy be abolished.
"Fortunately for Wan Ji, our judges are always fair and measured in their judgment. It's always difficult to find the balance in cases involving freedom of speech.
"It's easy to say freedom must have limits, but who sets the limits? The upper crust of society insulted the rakyat all the time, making false promises and calling them 'jumud' (ignorant) and stupid (badut).
But they were not prosecuted for insulting us.
He said that, as such, the Sedition Act should be repealed, as the just application of the law is impossible.
Zaid also commented on the silence following the imprisonment of Wan Ji, comparing it in contrast with the late Datuk Seri Karpal Singh, who was found guilty of insulting the Sultan of Perak in 2009.
"I remember when Karpal Singh was found guilty (he was acquitted later) of insulting the Sultan of Perak, and those in power today condemned the decision.
"Led by Lim Kit Siang and PKR, there was a loud chorus asking for the repeal of the act, saying that it violates basic freedom of speech and others.
"When Wan Ji was sent to jail, there was total silence. The 'defenders' of freedom of speech have gone mute. No statement was issued.
"I know Karpal was the Lion of Jelutong and the leader of the DAP, and Wan Ji is just another Malay preacher," he wrote.
On Monday, the Court of Appeal dismissed Wan Ji's final appeal against his conviction and allowed the Sessions Court's original nine-month sentence to be reinstated.
The Shah Alam Sessions Court sentenced the preacher to nine months in jail on April 9, 2018, after he was found guilty of committing sedition against Sultan Sharafuddin Idris Shah in a Facebook post in 2012.