Malaysian politician David Orok, above, has been jailed for 16 months for insulting Islam and the ‘prophet’ Mohammed in a Facebook posting.
Orok pleaded to sedition at his trial at Kota Kinabalu High Court. He was charged under Section 4(1)(c) of the Sedition Act. He had initially pleaded not guilty to the charge.
The Court was told that a police report had been lodged by a woman after she received a WhatsApp message containing a screenshot of Orok’s Facebook posting.
It was one the 46 police reports lodged against Orok, a State Reform Party member, after his Facebook posting went viral.
Pressing for a deterrent sentence, senior federal counsel Jamil Aripin said belittling any religion indicated the person concerned had no sense of mutual respect nor good social behaviour.
He said individuals who chose to post opinions or statements that were incompatible with the nation’s values should not be spared.
Such postings and remarks incite religious and racial hatred, which is capable of causing violence and distrust among the diverse races and religions in Malaysia.
Orok’s counsel Hendry Gudid, appealing for a lenient sentence, said his client regretted his actions and had posted an apology on his Facebook page.
He said David’s passion was intellectual debate among his family and friends and used platforms like Facebook for such discourse.
This matter was blown out of proportion.
Hat tip: Trevor Blake