Tuesday, August 27, 2024 -Former Malaysian Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin has been charged with sedition over comments he made regarding the country’s former king, according to his lawyer.
The 77-year-old politician appeared in
court in the northern town of Gua Musang, where he pleaded not guilty to the
charge.
The sedition charge stems from
remarks Muhyiddin made during a speech ahead of recent by-elections, in which
he questioned the 2022 decision of then-monarch Sultan Abdullah Sultan Ahmad
Shah to appoint his political rival, Anwar Ibrahim, as Malaysia’s prime
minister. The king’s decision followed a hotly contested election and was
instrumental in forming a coalition government led by Anwar.
Malaysia operates as a constitutional
monarchy, where the throne is uniquely rotated every five years among the
rulers of nine states with deep-rooted Islamic royal traditions. While the role
of the king is largely ceremonial, it holds significant respect in the
Muslim-majority nation, and recent years have seen the monarch play a critical
role in maintaining political stability.
Supporters of Muhyiddin, who now
leads the opposition, expressed their approval outside the courthouse when they
learned of his not-guilty plea, as reported by an AFP journalist on the scene.
The sedition charge, brought under
Malaysia’s colonial-era Sedition Act, carries the potential for a fine and a
prison sentence of up to three years for those convicted of undermining the
monarchy. The case underscores the sensitive nature of comments related to the
royal institution in Malaysia.
The Gua Musang court has scheduled
Muhyiddin’s next hearing for November 4, where further proceedings will take
place.
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