POLICE have started a crackdown on participants of the Women’s March Malaysia (WMMY) 2023 held on March 12 in conjunction with International Women’s Day, which saw about 200 participants.
Police have said that they were investigating them with regard to offences under Peaceful Assembly Act 2012 (PAA) and Minor Offences Act 1995. Notices to be present at the police station for investigation were sent out to about seven participants in the middle of the night, according to the organisers of the march.
Peaceful assembly is a right recognised in Article 10(1)(b) of the federal constitution, whereby Article 10 also gives us the right to freedom of speech and expression.
Thus, participants in a peaceful assembly can shout out and even hold placards calling out for matters, issues, concerns, or rights that the government of the day may not support.
Peaceful assembly is a means of advocating issues and concerns to the public to create awareness and garner more support.
That is why a peaceful assembly should rightly be organised in a place where it can be seen and heard by the public. Many times, permission to have a peaceful assembly in Dataran Merdeka has been denied when it is a good venue for a peaceful assembly. It should be a right to have a peaceful assembly in any public space.
A peaceful assembly attracts participants from all walks of society, not just members of an organisation or political parties, and as such, it is absurd to hold the organiser responsible for actions of some individual participants who may have come to join the protest on becoming aware of it.
It must be remembered that the PAA was enacted despite protest from the Malaysian Bar, Malaysian Human Rights Commission, civil society, and many others.
On November 29, 2011, the Malaysian Bar organised the Walk for Freedom 2011: Peaceful Assembly Bill Cannot and Must Not Become Law, which was reportedly attended by about 1,500 people.
The PAA is a draconian law that restricts and deters the exercise of the real right to peaceful assembly.
It makes no sense that police are “permission givers” for a human right to be exercised.
It simply gives police too much power to impose conditions and restrictions. Even after “giving approval”, police can suddenly change their minds and impose other restrictions.
On June 17, 2022, the Malaysian Bar’s Walk for Judicial Independence attended by about 500 lawyers was suddenly prevented by police from marching to Parliament from the assembly point in Padang Merbok. Previously, they were allowed to march to Parliament, with a restriction placed on the number of representatives that could go beyond the Parliament gate.
Weak points in peaceful assembly law
People in Malaysia cannot speedily exercise the right to peaceful assembly because of the required five-day notice to police and the other onerous obligations imposed by the law. A protest more than five days later is simply too late, and will likely not get much public support or media attention.
No right for children, even 18-20 year olds who can already vote
UNDI18 allows those who are 18 or above to vote, but the PAA says they cannot organise a peaceful assembly unless they are 21 and above. It denies the right of children to organise and participate in peaceful assemblies, despite Malaysia being a signatory of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child.
Denial of non-Malaysians the right to peaceful assembly
PAA unjustifiably denies non-Malaysians the right to peaceful assembly. Hence, Myanmar nationals cannot protest the violation of rights of the Rohingya people, or even dangerous rare earth factories.
Onerous obligations and duties imposed on ‘organisers’
The organisers are, amongst others, made responsible for all participants not breaking any laws, and for arranging “security” to be in charge of the orderly conduct, bearing the clean-up cost, and getting the consent of the owner or occupier of the place of assembly.
The PAA is a tool to control and restrict the exercise of the right to peaceful assembly. It is used to deter, when it should protect the exercising of a right. The government, including police, should be protecting those who exercise this right, and not the opposite.
Before the enactment of the PAA, there was a better right to peaceful assembly, although the problem then was that gatherings of more than three or five was considered a crime. There was the risk of being charged for taking part in a peaceful assembly, but when peaceful assemblies did happen, police asked the people to disperse after giving some time and that was that. Seldom did we find people investigated or charged, save for the 1998 Reformasi protests.
Repeal Section 141 of the Penal Code
It must be noted, that despite the enactment of the PAA, Section 141 of the Penal Code is strangely still not repealed, where it says that “an assembly of five or more persons is designated an ‘unlawful assembly’, if it, amongst others, cause mischief or criminal trespass, or other offence”.
As we know, excessive noise is an offence under the Minor Offences Act, and we recall that in 2015, 11 workers from National Union of Tobacco Industry Workers were arrested from the legal picket for “excessive noise”.
Madpet calls for the immediate repeal of the PAA. Another act that truly respects the right of peaceful assembly should be enacted.
Madpet also calls for the repeal of Section 114 of the Penal Code that criminalises or deters the right to peaceful assembly.
Madpet calls for police to stop harassing the participants of WMMY 2023 and other people who exercised their right of peaceful assembly.
Madpet calls for Malaysia to recognise and defend the people’s right to peaceful assembly. – The Vibes, March 17, 2023
Madpet is Malaysians Against Death Penalty and Torture
