‘Sarawak for Sarawakians’ slogan harmless
KUCHING: Several lawyers here opined that law enforcers had no locus standi to summon or arrest motorists who stick ‘Sarawak for Sarawakians’ (or S4S) stickers on their vehicles.
This is more so when the slogan is already popular and generally used by the public for multiple purposes and meanings.
One big group that carry the S4S slogan are fans of the state football team, argued a lawyer. The slogan is also used by groups and sub-groups on the social media, notably Facebook.
Another lawyer, who requested anonymity, said there was no provision in the Road Transport Act 1987 preventing such stickers from being pasted on vehicles, as long as they do not cause obstruction to the drivers.
Hence, directive to remove S4S stickers by the Road Transport Department (JPJ), if any, would be against the freedom of expression and leaned towards an abuse of power.
The lawyer advised motorists to challenge law enforcers to issue summonses if they insisted on removing the stickers. They (motorists) should also ask the law enforcers to show the court order that prevented these stickers from being used on vehicles. Several other lawyers opined it would be difficult to press charges against these motorists because the S4S slogan carried multiple meanings and purposes.
They added it was also arguable if the slogan was seditious in nature.
If the authority acted now, the question would be whether the action is reasonable under Sedition (Amendment) Act 2015 as the slogan carried multiple meanings and purpose.
In the United States for instance, there was a `Texas for Texans’ sticker but no arrest had ever been reported.
Rumours have been rife that the police and JPJ would mount operations to get such stickers removed from vehicles.
When contacted yesterday, state police chief Datuk Seri Muhammad Sabtu Osman and a state JPJ spokesman said they had never issued any directive to book motorists displaying S4S stickers on their vehicles.
At a function here yesterday, Kuching District police chief ACP Roslan Bek Ahmad told reporters he only issued the directive to his men as they were supposed to be independent from mainstream politics.