Malaysia Oversight

Reform must be studied, not just left to courts, says Anwar

By FMT in August 21, 2025 – Reading time 2 minute
Ex-committee members of deregistered temple cannot sue trustees, rules court


Court of Appeal Mahkamah rayuan
The Court of Appeal declared on Tuesday that the terms ‘offensive’ and ‘annoy’ in the previous iteration of Section 233 of the Communications and Multimedia Act were unconstitutional.
KUALA LUMPUR:

Prime Minister Ibrahim today defended the government’s appeal against a court ruling that the words “offensive” and “annoy” in the previous iteration of Section 233 of the Communications and Multimedia Act 1998 (CMA) are unconstitutional.

said institutional reforms could not be solely based on court decisions but must be holistically studied before implementation.

“The courts provide their views and we will examine them,” he told reporters, adding that if a court ruling was aligned with the reform agenda, the government would be open to it.

“For example, when it comes to unlawful assemblies, I have a problem because the rulers have said that the freedom to assemble should not extend to palace compounds. So we have to think about that.

“Sometimes, in our eagerness to (ensure people’s) freedoms, it offends other areas,” the prime minister added.

On Tuesday, the Court of Appeal declared that the terms “offensive” and “annoy” in the previous iteration of Section 233 of the CMA were unconstitutional.

DAP backbencher Syahredzan Johan welcomed the decision and urged the attorney-general to review all ongoing cases involving the old version of Section 233.

Communications minister Fadzil said yesterday that the government would file an appeal to the Federal Court against the Court of Appeal’s ruling.



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