KUALA LUMPUR, June 16 — Rev Father Paulino Miranda could be
jailed a year and fined up to RM10,000 for taking part in a candlelight
vigil four years ago in Petaling Jaya near here despite a new law
allowing public assemblies in Malaysia.
But the Malaysian Catholic priest has said he would rather be locked up than spend a single sen on the fine.
“I would rather go to jail than pay a fine but only if they find me guilty,” Miranda told The Malaysian Insider.
“Paying the fine would be conceding that what I did was wrong,” he added when contacted yesterday.
Miranda is among 21 people on trial for taking part in an illegal assembly in Petaling Jaya on October 9, 2008 and refusing a police order to disperse, under section 27(5)(a) and section 27(4) of the Police Act 1967 which have since been amended and replaced with a new law allowing peaceful public rallies.
Despite the change in law, the charge remains.
The vocal parish priest of the only Catholic church in Shah Alam, the capital of Malaysia’s most-developed state, said he had asked his lawyer, Francis Pereira, to write in to the Attorney-General’s Chambers (AGC) in September last year asking for the charges against him to be dropped following the change in law. It was to no avail.
The public prosecutor wrote back three months later in November 2011 rejecting his application.
“We will continue the prosecution against your client under section 27(5)(a) and section 27(4) of the Police Act 1967,” deputy public prosecutor Mohamad Hanafiah Zakaria said in his letter of reply dated last November 22.
“I’ve decided, simply because as far as I am concerned, I did not do anything wrong.
“The whole thing was a candlelight vigil calling for the abolishment of the ISA,” Miranda said, referring to the recently repealed Internal Security Act, which had been criticised as an outdated law used to clamp down on dissent against the ruling Barisan Nasional (BN) government.
The parish priest of the Church of Divine Mercy has made no secret of his stand and says he has also informed the Catholic Archbishop, Tan Sri Murphy Pakiam, of his decision.
“Yes, I told him. He didn’t chide me. He said he’ll pray for me,” he said.
Asked what would happen to his church if he had to go to jail, he said: “Oh, don’t worry. We’re all not indispensable.”
But not everyone agrees with Miranda’s decision. His own lawyer seemed concerned for his client’s welfare.
Pereira told The Malaysian Insider he was aware that Miranda had been telling several people about his jail-than-pay-fine stand, but could not sway the priest to change his mind.
“I am the lawyer, I wouldn’t advise something like that.
“He’s got a mind of his own and his own convictions,” the lawyer said.
The prosecution closed its case yesterday. It will be a while before the court makes its ruling.
Miranda will be back in the dock on August 9 for submissions.
Also on trial are Petaling Jaya Utara MP Tony Pua, Selangor DAP state assemblymen Ronnie Liu and Lau Weng San, and Petaling Jaya city councillor Tiew Way Keng.
They are accused of taking part in an illegal assembly held on the grounds in front of the Petaling Jaya City Council (MBPJ) building on October 9, 2008 between 9pm and 10.10pm, and failing to disperse after a police order was given by Supt Mohamad Shukor Sulong about 9.50pm.
All 21 accused, whose ages ranged between 25 and 62, have pleaded not guilty.
If found guilty, they can be fined up to RM10,000 and jailed up to one year under section 27(8) of the same Police Act.
“This is a process of intimidation to drive fear into people from exercising their democratic right of peaceful assembly,” Rev Father O.C. Lim from the Catholic Research Centre here told The Malaysian Insider when Miranda was initially charged.
The case has been linked to the two Bersih rallies on July 9 last year and the more recent April 28 assembly in Dataran Merdeka, putting the spotlight on the government’s use of laws to clamp down on dissent, despite having repealed the controversial ISA.
But the Malaysian Catholic priest has said he would rather be locked up than spend a single sen on the fine.
“I would rather go to jail than pay a fine but only if they find me guilty,” Miranda told The Malaysian Insider.
“Paying the fine would be conceding that what I did was wrong,” he added when contacted yesterday.
Miranda is among 21 people on trial for taking part in an illegal assembly in Petaling Jaya on October 9, 2008 and refusing a police order to disperse, under section 27(5)(a) and section 27(4) of the Police Act 1967 which have since been amended and replaced with a new law allowing peaceful public rallies.
Despite the change in law, the charge remains.
The vocal parish priest of the only Catholic church in Shah Alam, the capital of Malaysia’s most-developed state, said he had asked his lawyer, Francis Pereira, to write in to the Attorney-General’s Chambers (AGC) in September last year asking for the charges against him to be dropped following the change in law. It was to no avail.
The public prosecutor wrote back three months later in November 2011 rejecting his application.
“We will continue the prosecution against your client under section 27(5)(a) and section 27(4) of the Police Act 1967,” deputy public prosecutor Mohamad Hanafiah Zakaria said in his letter of reply dated last November 22.
“I’ve decided, simply because as far as I am concerned, I did not do anything wrong.
“The whole thing was a candlelight vigil calling for the abolishment of the ISA,” Miranda said, referring to the recently repealed Internal Security Act, which had been criticised as an outdated law used to clamp down on dissent against the ruling Barisan Nasional (BN) government.
The parish priest of the Church of Divine Mercy has made no secret of his stand and says he has also informed the Catholic Archbishop, Tan Sri Murphy Pakiam, of his decision.
“Yes, I told him. He didn’t chide me. He said he’ll pray for me,” he said.
Asked what would happen to his church if he had to go to jail, he said: “Oh, don’t worry. We’re all not indispensable.”
But not everyone agrees with Miranda’s decision. His own lawyer seemed concerned for his client’s welfare.
Pereira told The Malaysian Insider he was aware that Miranda had been telling several people about his jail-than-pay-fine stand, but could not sway the priest to change his mind.
“I am the lawyer, I wouldn’t advise something like that.
“He’s got a mind of his own and his own convictions,” the lawyer said.
The prosecution closed its case yesterday. It will be a while before the court makes its ruling.
Miranda will be back in the dock on August 9 for submissions.
Also on trial are Petaling Jaya Utara MP Tony Pua, Selangor DAP state assemblymen Ronnie Liu and Lau Weng San, and Petaling Jaya city councillor Tiew Way Keng.
They are accused of taking part in an illegal assembly held on the grounds in front of the Petaling Jaya City Council (MBPJ) building on October 9, 2008 between 9pm and 10.10pm, and failing to disperse after a police order was given by Supt Mohamad Shukor Sulong about 9.50pm.
All 21 accused, whose ages ranged between 25 and 62, have pleaded not guilty.
If found guilty, they can be fined up to RM10,000 and jailed up to one year under section 27(8) of the same Police Act.
“This is a process of intimidation to drive fear into people from exercising their democratic right of peaceful assembly,” Rev Father O.C. Lim from the Catholic Research Centre here told The Malaysian Insider when Miranda was initially charged.
The case has been linked to the two Bersih rallies on July 9 last year and the more recent April 28 assembly in Dataran Merdeka, putting the spotlight on the government’s use of laws to clamp down on dissent, despite having repealed the controversial ISA.
OutSyed The Box
ReplyDeleteIf you have articles, information, thoughts you want to share just send it to me at ali.syedakbar@gmail.com. Please keep your articles brief, not more than 1000 words or just use bullet points. If you have pictures to go with the articles, that is even better. Towards an excellent Malaysia.
Wednesday, August 10, 2011
Helen Ang Versus The Bishop
Folks, there is a new cili padi in town. Read Helen Ang's latest Blog. Here is an extract :
By Helen Ang
Bishop Paul Tan and the political animals
Over the last six months, Bishop Paul Tan Chee Ing has given just Malaysiakini alone more than 20 interviews. For those of you who cannot access the pro-opposition news portal which is for paying subscribers only, you can alternatively click on the FMT interviews, here.
INTRODUCTION
The bishop, due to his superb command of English, always uses big words and even more difficult to understand sentences.1 (Click Annex for footnotes.)
Therefore I shall need to paraphrase and simplify some of his comments. However, statements within quotation marks are the bishop’s own words, copied verbatim from Malaysiakini.
Firstly, who is he? Bishop Paul Tan is president of the Catholic Bishops Conference of Malaysia, Singapore and Brunei, taking over from Archbishop Murphy Pakiam.2
He is an activist.3
In March, briefly into his tenure, Bishop Paul censured in “no uncertain terms” the impoundment of Bahasa Indonesia bibles by customs at Port Klang and Kuching, and said the action was like the “crass forms of censorship redolent of the communist era”.
When the government released the bibles, Bishop Paul said: “The two conditions [for their release] are flatly unacceptable to Christians who are duty bound to bring the good news of salvation to all who want to listen”. In other words, he’s explaining that Christians also regard it their duty to berdakwah.
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I only have a simple request for the Bishop Tan. Can you please send an email, fax, tweet or whatever is expeditious to the Holy Father at the Vatican. I would like you to tell him two things.
1. Please tell all Catholics (not including those in Malaysia of course) to stop propagating, helping to propagate or even thinking about the idea that the word 'Allah' refers to the pagan moon-god. This is a very bad thing to say.
.
2. Please can you tell the Holy Father in the Vatican if he can use the word 'Allah' for this year's Christmas sermon at the Vatican? If it is good enough for the Catholics in Malaysia, then certainly it must be good enough for the Holy Father.
.
Thank you.
http://syedsoutsidethebox.blogspot.com/2011/08/helen-ang-versus-bishop.html