social media

Legal experts raise alarm bells over Fahmi’s conviction

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Source: The Malaysian Insight

Legal experts say graphic designer Fahmi Reza’s sentence to one month in jail and a fine of RM30,000 for insulting Prime Minister Najib Razak with a clown face caricature posted on Facebook was undemocratic and unacceptable. – The Malaysian Insight file pic, February 20, 2018.

ABSURD, undemocratic and totally unacceptable.

These were the general consensus among legal experts on the one month jail sentence and a hefty fine imposed on graphic designer Fahmi Reza by the Ipoh Sessions Court today for posting an edited image of Prime Minister Najib Razak on Facebook.

The court decision raised alarm bells, with one law expert questioning if Malaysia was emulating Thailand where punitive measures are taken against those who criticised the country’s monarch.

Universiti Malaya law lecturer Azmi Sharom said if laws were used selectively to protect one individual or a special group from legitimate criticism, it echoes of “lese majeste” (insulting the monarch or other ruler).

Thailand has a strict draconian lese-majeste law which forbids any insult to the monarchy.

Azmi said the decision against Fahmi also placed restrictions on the freedom of speech and made it an offence if anyone poked fun at a politician. Read more →

Fahmi Reza jailed one month, fined RM30,000 over offensive caricature of PM

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Source: The Star Online

Pic drawn from The Star Online

Fahmi Reza — Pic drawn from The Star Online

IPOH: Activist and graphic designer Fahmi Reza (pic) has been sentenced to one month’s jail and fined RM30,000 for posting a caricature of a national leader on social media.

Fahmi, 40, whose full name is Mohd Fahmi Reza Mohd Zarin, was found guilty by the Sessions Court here Tuesday (Feb 20) of uploading an edited image of the Prime Minister on Facebook with the intention to offend.

He was charged with committing the offence on Feb 8, 2016 at 12.31pm.

Mohd Fahmi was charged under Section 233(1)(a) of the Communications and Multimedia Act 1998, which is punishable under Section 233(3) of the same Act.

Judge Norashima Khalid also ordered the accused to be jailed an additional six months if he fails to pay the fine. Read more →

Woman remanded for insulting Terengganu MB on Facebook

HAKAM_Intern

Source: The Star

KUALA TERENGGANU: A woman was arrested after she allegedly insulted Mentri Besar Datuk Seri Ahmad Razif Abdul Rahman on social media.

It is learned that the 45-year-old contractor had put up the derogatory comment on a Facebook Group called Gabungan Anak Terengganu.

Read more →

The Buzz in Social Media: Fake News, Propaganda or Stigma?

Taken from FB

NO ONE is free from the politics of information in this digital age, and whatever its shortfalls, the internet has democratised information and changed the way we create and consume information, including “fake news”. But what is fake news? Who gets to decide if news is fake or not?

This session will help unpack what we mean when we talk about ‘fake news’, ‘misinformation’ and disinformation, in particular how these are weaponised against human rights advocates, activists, media, politicians and democracy.

THE BUZZ IN SOCIAL MEDIA: Fake News, Propaganda or Stigma?
Forum by Empower
Sun 17 Dec 2017, 1.30pm
Ground floor, The School, Jaya One, Petaling Jaya.

Speakers:
1. Asohan Aryaduray, Star Online, Senior Editor
2. Rizal Guaperas, Empower, Advocacy Officer
3. Nik Elin Nik Rashid, lawyer
4. Zurairi AR, The Malay Mail, Assistant News Editor

This forum is part of Art For Grabs: Laundromat of Love, Sat 16 & Sun 17 Dec 2017, at The School, Jaya One, Petaling Jaya.

Schoolboy gets RM5,000 fine for insulting Perak Sultan on Twitter

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Source: The Star Online

IPOH: The 18-year-old schoolboy who insulted the Sultan of Perak on his Twitter account using has pleaded guilty.

The SM Sultan Alauddin Riayat Shah 1 student Muhammad Nor Farhan Burhan pleaded guilty at the Magistrate’s court here on Thursday. (Oct 19)

He was sentenced to a RM5,000 fine.

During the proceeding, Magistrate Siti Hafiza Jaafar had asked him to recite the five verses of the Rukun Negara, to which he did fluently.

She also urged him to reflect on the Rukun Negara’s fifth verse in relation to his case, which was Good Behaviour and Morality. (Kesopanan dan Kesusilaan)

Over 2,000 fake accounts blocked or shut down since January

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Source: The Star Online

Facebook — AFP pic

KUALA LUMPUR: More than 2,000 fake social media accounts have been blocked or shut down since January this year, said the Communications and Multimedia Ministry.

Minister Datuk Seri Dr Salleh Said Keruak said the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) had reported these accounts to social media providers such as Facebook and Twitter because they violated the terms and conditions set by these platforms.

“From the 2,000 fake accounts, almost 75% of them have been subjected to further action while the rest are still under investigation,” he told the Dewan Rakyat on Thursday.

Salleh was responding to a question from Datuk Mohd Fasiah Mohd Fakeh (BN – Sabak Bernam) on the number of fake accounts that have been identified and the actions taken to curb the spread of fake news. Read more →

Developing Critical Thinking should be an important agenda toward TN50 — Ng Seng Yi

Wei Meng Lim

Source:The Star

By Ng Seng Yi

In today’s context of a plethora of information available on social media, a “critical thinking ” approach could help discern fake information – Ng Seng Yi.

IF I were asked what my aspiration for the Transformasi Nasional 2050 (TN50) initiative is, I would say a developed nation with people who can think critically.

At the Eighth Annual International Conference on Critical Thinking and Education Reform, Summer 1987, Michael Scriven and Richard Paul defined critical thinking as the intellectually disciplined process of actively conceptualizing, applying, analysing, synthesizing, and/or evaluating information gathered from, or generated by, observation, experience, reflection, reasoning, or communication, as a guide to belief and action.

In other words, critical thinking is the ability to think clearly and rationally about what to do or what to believe. It includes the ability to engage in reflective and independent thinking when evaluating a plethora of information presented to readers. Read more →

1 day jail, RM4,000 fine for insulting Najib on Facebook

Coordinator

Source: FMT News

Money changer pleads guilty, as goverment lawyer presses for harsh sentence to deter other would-be offenders from making disparaging remarks about the prime minister. Pic from FMT News

KUALA LUMPUR: A foreign currency trader paid dearly for posting derogatory remarks about Prime Minister Najib Razak on his Facebook last year.

Mohd Nasaruddin Sairon, who hails from a Felda settlement in Kota Tinggi, Johor, was jailed a day and fined RM4,000 by a Sessions Court after he pleaded guilty to the charge.

The 41-year-old, who was unrepresented, committed the offence when he posted an emotionally charged remark about Najib on Facebook on Oct 8.

The posting on Nasaruddin’s Facebook page was read by a member of the public, Khalijah Mohamed, who filed a complaint with the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) the following day. Read more →

MCMC does not spy on WhatsApp users, says Salleh

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Source: The Star Online

Datuk Seri Dr Salleh Said Keruak – Pic from the Star Online.

KUCHING: The Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) is only a regulatory body and does not monitor or spy on messages WhatsApp users send on the platform, said Datuk Seri Dr Salleh Said Keruak.

Recent posts which alleged that the commission was monitoring content in the application was “absolutely false news,” the Communications and Multimedia Minister told reporters Friday after launching the Asean International Film Festival and Awards (AIFFA) 2017 Biz World.

Salleh said that the ministry had only been advising people against abusing the messaging platform as they were bound by the country’s laws and regulations.   Read more →