An international media watchdog Thursday accused Malaysian authorities of trying to intimidate bloggers after a minister threatened to use harsh laws to control what they post.
Nazri Aziz, minister in the prime minister's department, had warned that bloggers who offend could be charged under a harsh law which allows for indefinite detention without trial.
"It is outrageous to see a minister threatening to jail bloggers who have managed to create an unprecedented space for free expression in Malaysia," Paris-based Reporters Without Border (Reporters Sans Frontieres, RSF) said in a statement.
"Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi's government is the target of mounting criticism and its response seems to be repression," the press freedom organization said.
Nazri's threat came after a senior politician from the ruling United Malays National Organization (UMNO) lodged a police report earlier this week against a political website, Malaysia Today.
UMNO information chief Muhammad Muhammad Taib alleged that postings on the blog insulted Malaysia's king and Islam, and contained elements that could cause racial tension.
Website editor Raja Petra Kamarudin said he was questioned by police for eight hours on Wednesday.
In a brief article written after his release, he said "the police are not looking at any of my articles but are focusing on the comments in the blogs."
"The bottom line is, what you post in the comments section may get me sent to jail under the Sedition Act," Raja Petra said.
The minister had said bloggers who insult the king and incite racism could be charged under three laws, including the Sedition Act and the draconian Internal Security Act, which allows for indefinite detention without trial.
"Citing the need to combat attempts to incite racial hatred or insult the king, the internal security ministry is trying to intimidate dissidents, especially dissident bloggers," RSF said.
The organization also highlighted other prominent cases against bloggers and called on authorities to drop charges against them.
Nathaniel Tan, an aide to former deputy prime minister Anwar Ibrahim, was detained by police for four days over an anonymous posting on his blog referring to corruption allegations against a minister.
Malaysia was placed 92 out of 168 countries according to respect for press freedom in the latest RSF ranking of nations.
-- AFP
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