The internet has become an essential part of our lives and with that, comes the ever growing problem of cyber harassment. In this first of a five-part UndiMsia!Chats series, People Against Cyber Threats/Harassment (PeopleACT) would like to consult the public on five specific issues on how the current laws in Malaysia deal with cyber harassment.
Joining us on the panel are Subang MP YB Sivarasa Rasiah, Dr. Izura Masdina Zakri, senior lecturer, faculty of law from University of Malaya and Prof. Zaharom Nain, professor of media and communications studies from University of Nottingham. The panel will be moderated by Long Seh Lih of PeopleACT.
Our panel will talk about how cyber harassment affects Malaysians andanalyse the adequacy of the Communications and Multimedia Act (CMA) 1998 in tackling cyber harassment while comparing it with laws from other countries. The talk will then open up to the audience for discussion.
We invite the public to attend this chat to help PeopleACT obtain as much feedback as possible on how best to tackle the issue of cyber harassment through legislative reform without compromising on freedom of expression.
You are also strongly encouraged to attend the remaining four chats on the following issues:
Series #2 (22 Jul, 11am – 1.00pm) – Is the current law sufficient to address online sexual harassment?
Series #3 (5 Aug, 11am – 12.30pm) – Is the current law prohibiting obscene publications sufficient to tackle cyber harassment?
Series #4 (12 Aug, 11am – 12.30pm) – Is the current Penal Code sufficient in addressing threats of death and rape and other abusive communications made online?
Series #5 (19 Aug, 11am – 12.30pm) – Is the current law sufficient to deal with the offence of online breach of privacy?
PeopleACT is an UndiMsia! intiative. It is run by a group of human rights defenders from different non-profit organisations in Malaysia. Its mission is to make the cyber environment a safer, more respectful and empowering space for Malaysians through strategic legislative advocacy and public awareness campaign.
For more information, please visit mcchr.org/sla.