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A prominent blogger’s arrest underscores confusion as government flirts with both media reform and crackdown Jed Yoong, ASIA SENTINEL
Haris Ibrahim walked across Kuala Lumpur’s Merdeka Square on a clear night and stopped at a stage in front of the Moroccan-style Sultan Abdul Samad building. The 49-year-old lawyer, who also runs the blog The People’s Parliament, took out a candle and lit it in solidarity with the first Malaysian blogger to be charged for sedition, Raja Petra Kamarudin of the Web site Malaysia Today. That was a mistake. The district police chief walked up to him and asked, "What are you doing here?" He replied, "Holding a candle." When the police chief told him to leave, Haris demanded to know why. In the end, Haris was told that he was under arrest and escorted to the police station for questioning, later to be released. Haris is the latest to face a brush with the law as the Malaysian government, accustomed to a captive mainstream media owned by compliant allies and political parties, grows increasingly irritated with dissent. Earlier this week, R Nadeswaran, deputy editor of the independent newspaper the Sun, and his colleague, Terence Fernandez, were questioned by the police for an article that alleged that RM9.9 million (US$2.9 million) was illegally transferred out of the Selangor state executive councilors' wives association by the wife of the previous chief minister, Mohammad Khir Toyo. Raja Petra, however, whose blog sometimes gets a million hits a day, is by far the most publicized. He was charged with seeking to overthrow the government on Tuesday after police raided his home and confiscated his laptop and other computer equipment. He was questioned at the Commercial Crimes Investigation headquarters over an inflammatory article carried on Malaysia Today that sought to implicate Deputy Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak and his wife in the murder of Mongolian translator Altantuya Shaariibuu in October 2006. Defiant, Raja Petra initially refused to post bail and chose jail till the court hearing set for October. He then refused to see his wife and went on a hunger strike that was later abandoned. Raja Petra's arrest has sparked a wave of public sympathy and solidarity among bloggers. A large crowd, including prominent opposition politicians like Lim Kit Siang of the Democratic Action Party and Wan Azizah of the People's Justice Party, showed up in court. On Wednesday, supporters gathered outside the jail located on the fringe of Kuala Lumpur. The following day, about 50 bloggers and friends who sought to hold the candlelight vigil were stopped by police who had condoned off the main entrances to Merdeka Square. About 100 policemen guarded the empty square. Haris and two others were detained briefly and subsequently released. READ MORE HERE
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