[UPDATED] Nature activist probed for defamation after tweet about Pahang regent: cops

KUALA LUMPUR – The head of Pahang Malaysian Nature Society (MNS), Noor Jehan Abu Bakar, is being investigated for defamation under the Penal Code and the Multimedia and Communications Act.

Kuantan district police chief Wan Mohd Zahari Wan Busu told The Vibes that the investigation is being carried out under Section 500 and 500(b) of the Penal Code for defamatory statements as well as Section 233 of the Multimedia and Communications Act 1998.

The first charge carries the punishment of imprisonment for a term of up to two years, a fine, or both if convicted, while the second involving the misuse of communications networks carries a maximum of one year in jail, or a fine of up to RM50,000.

Earlier today, The Vibes reported that Noor Jehan had been called in for questioning by police over a Twitter post she allegedly posted on July 18.

She claimed that Tengku Hassanal Ibrahim Alam Shah Al-Sultan Abdullah Ri’ayatuddin Al-Mustafa Billah Shah and other high-ranking officers were two hours late for the Buffer Zone Ecosystem Restoration Programme – a tree-planting event in Pantai Chenor, Kemaman, Terengganu on the same day.

Speaking to The Vibes, Noor Jehan said she did not intend to slander anyone and was instead venting her frustrations over having to wait for two hours for the programme to begin, adding that she is confused over why she is being investigated as she only shared her experience with her followers.

This is not the first time this year that Pahang authorities cracked down on leaders from environmental NGOs.

In February, former Khazanah Alam Malaysia president Puan Sri Shariffa Sabrina Syed Akil, 60, was slapped with a lawyer’s letter from the Pahang government seeking an apology and RM1 million in damages after she spoke on deforestation and logging in the state.

The notice alleged that her statements had put the state government in a bad light and subjected it to accusations from the public that “it is a government which is irresponsible, deceitful, and lacks integrity”.

On March 15, the activist pleaded not guilty in the Raub sessions court to three charges of unlawful occupation of state land.

The court had recently dismissed the prosecution’s application for a gag order against Shariffa Sabrina to prevent her from making any statement on her state land encroachment case to the media, claiming that the submission failed to meet set conditions. – The Vibes, July 25, 2022