Court affirms Mat Sabu’s acquittal

Three-judge Appeals panel rules prosecution failed to raise prima facie case

PUTRAJAYA: Amanah president Mohamad Sabu has been cleared over his controversial remarks about the 1950 Bukit Kepong incident after the Court of Appeal found the case defective.

Justice Tengku Maimun Tuan Mat affirmed the acquittal, ruling the charge had an error as it did not clarify that the people insulted by the remarks were deceased.

Mohamad, popularly known as Mat Sabu, was charged with defam- ing policemen and their family members who defended themselves in the Feb 23, 1950 attack by communist guerrillas at the Bukit Kepong police station.

He was alternatively charged with criminally defaming three policemen – Konstabel Marin Abu Bakar Daud, Konstabel Jaafar Hassan and Sarjan Yusoff Rono – and their family members during a public address in August 2011.

Though the alternative charge named the policemen, it did not clarify that they had died.

The three- judge panel that included Justices Ahmadi Asnawi and Rhodzariah Bujang also unanimously found that the prosecution failed to raise a prima facie case.

They upheld the Georgetown High Court and Sessions Court decisions to acquit the politician.

Earlier, DPP Nurulhuda Nuraini Mohamad Nor argued that the acquittal should be overturned, as the courts had set too high a bar to prove mens rea (intent), where even if Mohamad’s statement was ironic, it could still be deemed to be hurtful, making it criminally defamatory.

She also submitted that whether or not the insulted persons named were deceased would not affect the charge, as the remarks would impugn their reputation and be hurtful to their families.

Mohamad’s lawyer Mohamed Hanipa Maidin said the charges were defective since they lacked “the necessary ingredients”.

Met outside the court, Mohamad, 61, said he was relieved with the outcome and its impact to freedom of speech.

“The issue was a matter of history, better suited for a forum or dialogue, rather than the inside of a courtroom. It should be open to interpretation and discussion,” he said.

On March 31, Georgetown High Court judge Lim Chong Fong upheld the acquittal, saying that though he respected the police force’s contribution in the Bukit Kepong incident, he also had to uphold the law and respect freedom of speech.

On July 8, 2015, the Georgetown Sessions Courts acquitted Mohamad of the primary and alternate charge.