The Malaysian parliament repealed on Thursday the recently adopted Anti-Fake News Act amid fears that it could be used as a tool to prosecute people for political reasons, local media reported.
MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 16th August, 2018) The Malaysian parliament repealed on Thursday the recently adopted Anti-Fake News Act amid fears that it could be used as a tool to prosecute people for political reasons, local media reported.
According to the Malay Mail newspaper, the debates lasted six hours with the fierce resistance from the opposition.
One of the opposition lawmakers argued that the act was created to address threat from social media, which can be used as a weapon and can "cause discontent throughout the world," and demanded to provide evidence that the act had been used as a means of political prosecution, the newspaper reported.
The Anti-Fake News Act 2018 was adopted by the Malaysian parliament in April. The legislation provides for punishment for the authors of fake news, who can be sentenced to up to six years in jail and an up to 500,000-ringgit fine (almost $123,000). The law was criticized by human rights activists who believe the new legislation to be aimed at silencing dissent.
