Release her immediately, says International Commission of Jurists; government excessive in stifling free speech, says Human Rights Watch

BANGKOK: International human rights groups have condemned the arrest and detention of Nurul Izzah Anwar, the daughter of imprisoned Opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim, for sedition.

The International Commission of Jurists (ICJ) which issued a statement condemning Nurul Izzahs arrest had in addition called on the Government of Malaysia to immediately release Nurul Izzah and reiterated its call for the repeal of the Sedition Act.

Human Rights Watch, in a statement, said the arrest shows that the Malaysian government seems to know no bounds in its efforts to stifle free speech.

Nurul Izzah, the Member of Parliament for Lembah Pantai, was arrested at 3.30pm at Dang Wangi police station in Kuala Lumpur. She was summoned by police to provide a statement for her involvement in a demonstration on February 14 over the jailing of her father for sodomy.

Police have detained her for investigations into a speech she made in parliament on March 10 that was deemed seditious under section 4(1) of the colonial-era 1948 Sedition Act.

Nurul Izzah had read out her fathers statement in Parliament that reportedly criticised the judges in her fathers Sodomy II case. Anwar who has been jailed five years for sodomy is still the MP for Permatang Pauh but he was not released to attend the recent sitting of Parliament.

The Malaysian authorities must stop the continued use of the offence of sedition to arbitrarily detain and stifle freedom of expression, said Sam Zarifi, ICJs regional director for Asia and the Pacific.

The arrest of MP Nurul Izzah Anwar shows that the Malaysia government seems to know no bounds in its efforts to stifle free speech and (the government is) criminalising dialogue that would be a normal part of political discourse in much of the rest of the world, said Phil Robertson, the Deputy Asia Director of Human Rights Watch.

Prime Minister Najib and his government are shamefully using the Sedition Act like an axe to hack down opposition politicians, community activists, and any others who dare speak their minds.

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International groups condemn arrest of Nurul