From FMT:
Dr M accused of trying to silence East Malaysians with scare tactic
KOTA KINABALU: Political activist Zainnal Ajamain has accused Dr Mahathir Mohamad of trying to scare the people of Sabah and Sarawak into silence on issues that matter to them.
Speaking to FMT, he said he disagreed with the prime minister that it was seditious to speak on the possibility of separation from the Malaysian federation.
Zainnal was commenting on Mahathir’s statement in the Dewan Rakyat that the Sedition Act could be used against those calling for Sarawak’s secession if their words jeopardised public order and security.
In his written reply to Lanang MP Alice Lau, Mahathir said there was no provision in the Federal Constitution, the Malaysia Agreement of 1963 (MA63) or the Inter-Governmental Committee Report that gave Sabah or Sarawak any right to secede from Malaysia.
Neither was such a right mentioned in the Cobbold Commission Report, the prime minister added.
But Zainnal, who is the Sabah government’s adviser on MA63, said those documents did not say the two states could not leave the federation.
“All these documents are silent on the issue of secession,” he said.
Nevertheless, he added, the documents implicitly stated that in order to gain independence, Sabah and Sarawak would need an act passed in Westminster.
He noted that Singapore, which left the federation in 1965, gained its independence only when Westminster passed the Singapore Independence Act in 1966.
Zainnal said he was not calling for the secession of Sabah and Sarawak, but only saying that the people of the two states had the right to speak of their aspirations without fear.
He said he believed many Sabahans and Sarawakians were content with the status quo but had no doubt they would rally if they felt threatened.
“I think it’s time to speak about this issue openly,” he said. “Isn’t it enough that we have been fooled for more than five decades?”
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It is every one's right to discuss on apportionment of funds and rights.
ReplyDeletePromoting Secession is definitely a threat to National Security.
Mahathir would be remiss in his duty if he did not make this clear.
sorry, u r very inconsistent pertaining to s n s secession. i am not sure if it bec of mahathir.
ReplyDeleteTun Dr munafiq Islam will DIE eventually....and before that in 2020 Sabah-Sarawak Sack malaya to Realise the Singapore Dream....Enough of the Islamic Arab Melayu Fake Sultan Agong Shariah Bahasa Melayu force to learn.... Bodohkan awak CRAP....with $1.4 Trillion in Debt....Foreigners please Avoid Malaysia as Investment destination.....because No Islam Arab Malay Bias Racist Supremacist Run Organisation, State or Nation IS ANY Good inthis world......think about it!!
ReplyDeleteCan anyone quote any Laws currently in place which says specifically that no one can discuss or debate or write about the question of Secession of Sabah and Sarawak from Malaysia?
ReplyDeleteIf there is none, then it is not against the Laws/Acts to discuss/debate about it unless it is instigating public disorder/violence/bearing arms etc are used which are then considered as offences under existing Laws and Acts. But what is the point, if it is not effective to carry out the required change?
In Parliament and State Assemblies, MPs/ADUNs are definitely allowed to discuss/debate without any fear of retribution unlike the public in which it is subjected to the whims and fancies of politicians, enforcement authorities, vigilante groups, Mafias, racists, religious bigots in interpreting the laws to suit their actions.
Thus, the public best recourse would be to engage with their representatives ADUN/MPS via the State Assemblies or Parliament for their views to be heard. Just vote them out in the next election if they don't comply with the wishes of the majority electorate or betray their promises on this issue.
This is because any effective results on this secession issue whether for or against will ultimately be decided by the State Assemblies and Parliament for it to be legally recognised and enforceable not only in Malaysia but also by the UN.
Those Sarawakians and Sabahans who feel strongly about this issue had better sit down and think about who the politicians they had been voting year in and year out to be their representatives in their State Assemblies or Parliament who does not even squeak about this in their own State Assemblies or Parliament.
Think in term of HOW Bangladesh separated from been the East Pakistan.
DeleteThere is similarity here.
There IS no laws forbidding Sabah/Sarawak from secession from M'sia. Especially when the terms of MA63 for them to join M'sia have been time & again been ignored/reworked/reinterpretated.
Federation of Malaysia Agreement
DeletePoint 7: Right of Secession
There should be no right to secede from the Federation.
When many of those other points in that MA63 r been ignored/reworked/reinterpretated, WHY must insisting point 7 to br uphold?
DeleteHead I win, tail u lose! Right?
So, how did Singapore secede from the Federation of Malaysia in 1965, since Point 7 also applied to them when the Federation of Malaysia Agreement was signed in 1963?
DeleteYou mean there was no discussion/debates at all and it just happened?
So, what's to stop it happening again if Sabah/Sarawak also wanted to take the same route like Singapore?