PUTRAJAYA: Home Minister Datuk Seri Saifuddin Nasution Ismail (pix) has refuted allegations that his ministry will amend the Printing Presses and Publications Act 1984 to rein in online media in the country.
He admitted there were discussions about the act but said they involved aspects to boost the value of compounds of infractions or breaches of the existing Act.
“Amendments to control online media are definitely not on our radar,” he said at a media conference here today, adding that there were also no such suggestions from any parties.
He also denied that his ministry was opposed to the setting up of the Media Council as reported by the media today.
“I was shocked when I heard about this issue and the Home Ministry (KDN) secretary-general (Datuk Ruji Ubi) and I have seen and checked which parts we disagree with, it’s not correct,” he said, reiterating that the Home Ministry had no objection towards the setting up of the council that is set to be tabled at the Parliament session in June.
In a separate development, Saifuddin said the rise in underage rape cases due to weaknesses and failure of civil law was false, adding that it was also not caused by unimplemented syariah enactments.
He was refuting a recent statement by Sik MP Ahmad Tarmizi Sulaiman at the Dewan Rakyat that underage rape cases were on the rise due to the failure of existing laws.
“The Syariah Criminal Code was crafted in Kelantan, which has the highest number of such cases, with 98 per cent of its residents being Malay Muslims.
“Such cases in Kelantan, Kedah and Terengganu have risen while they have dropped in Penang. I’m comparing data from 2022 and 2023, and the offenders are from the low-economic category, the B40 group,” he said.
He said that the statement was based on an excerpt of a previous briefing given to him by Bukit Aman Criminal Investigation Department director Datuk Seri Mohd Shuhaily Mohd Zain.
“Now isn’t the time to find fault as it is our shared responsibility to tackle this crime,” he added. -Bernama
