IN KUALA LUMPUR

EIGHT people have been arrested so far but only one has pleaded guilty.

All of them were hauled to court last week for condemning the Perak ruler, Sultan Azlan Shah, online. They were charged under a cyber law for irresponsible and offensive comments.

They were alleged to have posted insulting comments on the Sultan's website. They apparently blamed the Sultan for not making a wise decision when tackling the political situation in Perak.

Sultan Azlan Shah had asked Pakatan Rakyat to back down and let Barisan Nasional take over the silver state instead of dissolving the state assembly and allowing fresh polls.

Many people were unhappy with his decision but some went a little too far when they ALLEGEDLY hurled insults at the monarch ON THE WEBSITE.

This is the first time ever for anyone to be charged under the cyber law, the Communications and Multimedia Act 1998. But the charge was quite an awakening for Malaysians.

It shocked some very prominent bloggers. They didn't think that the government would have gone after ordinary Malaysians. They thought the cyber cops were only investigating them all this while.
Some people felt the eight deserved to be charged and thrown behind bars for not respecting the Sultan. They said this should be a lesson for online users to be careful with what they write on public forums.

A reader known only as Truth Seeking Citizen, who commented on the popular Rocky's Bru blog, called for Malaysians to wake up and read blogs with a pinch of salt.

"Use your wisdom to make your own decision. Blind support or following at your own peril! We need a better Malaysia, the blogsphere has in recent months been adulterated with lies and false allegations without any substantive evidence. It is also unfortunate that many who seek to reform, better governance, accountability and integrity has fallen into the trap of this cult of blind support," the reader said.

But of course, there are some who disagreed with the arrest and slammed the government for setting a precedent for online censorship.

Non-governmental organisations Centre for Independent Journalism (CIJ) and the Writers Alliance for Media Independence (WAMI) were worried that it could "be the start of a clampdown on online expression and the erosion of the right to discuss the role of the Malaysian royal families".

"It goes against Malaysia's commitment of no internet censorship legislated in section 3(3) of CMA and in the Multimedia Bill of Guarantees.

"The violation of the promise is a sign that the government, at the brink of the impending change in prime minister-ship, is getting more authoritarian," said Wami chairperson Wong Chin Huat and CIJ executive director V. Gayanthry in a statement.

They also took it as a move to further silence and spread fear among the public.

There are also some blog readers who suggested that all bloggers to unite and collect funds to help out with the legal fees for the seven of them who claimed trial.

But at the end of the day, I think it is safe to say that no one should abuse freedom of speech.

As an anonymous blog reader says: "Democracy has its limits. So does freedom. It does not mean that democracy allows one to fornicate in public or to commit suicide. Neither does it give one the right to destroy careers of others.

"In brief, do things reasonably and logically. Don't expect dignitaries to take things sitting down. When a tiger is pushed to the wall, it will naturally pounce back."