Six bloggers to be charged?

Malaysiakini reported that six people nationwide will be charged in court tomorrow for allegedly insulting the Sultan of Perak, Sultan Azlan Shah, in blogs or through the posting of comments.

Two will be charged at the Kuala Lumpur Sessions Court, one in Petaling Jaya, Selangor, one in Kota Kinabalu, Sabah and one in Butterworth, Penang.

A few more are scheduled to be charged in Kuala Terengganu on Sunday with a similar offence.

They will be charged under the Communications and Multimedia Act 1998.

It is understood that they are being hauled up for posting comments which have been deemed to be insulting to the Perak sultan over the present political crisis in the Silver State, which saw the Pakatan Rakyat-led government being ousted by Barisan Nasional following the defection of three assemblypersons.

The crisis culminated in Sultan Azlan Shah asking the ousted Pakatan Menteri Besar Mohd Nizar Jamaluddin to step down. However, Nizar refused, resulting in a protracted battle in courts in Kuala Lumpur and Ipoh.

It is not known whether any of those to be charged were involved in defacing the Perak royal website.

Facing jail, fine

Bukit Aman's Commercial Crime Department's Cyber and Multimedia Crime Investigation unit has probing the cases for the past one month.

It is also learnt that the individuals will be charged under section 233 of the Act for unwise use of network or network services for making comments, demands, suggestions or communication which are vulgar, false, threatening or disturbing.

The offence under the Act carries a maximum fine of RM50,000 or a maximum jail term of one year or both.

This will the first time that individuals are hauled up under this section.

Attorney-general Abdul Gani Patail later confirmed that six individuals are to be charged tomorrow and possibly another two on Sunday.

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