UNIVERSITI MALAYA ACADEMIC
STAFF ASSOCIATION (PKAUM)
AND
MALAYSIAN ACADEMICS
MOVEMENT (MOVE)
JOINT PRESS STATEMENT
REGARDING THE PERSECUTION OF
ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR DR AZMI
SHAROM
The University
of Malaya Academic Staff Union (PKAUM) and the Malaysian Academics Movement
(MOVE) wish to record our objection to the sedition charges being pressed
against Associate Professor Dr Azmi Sharom of the University Malaya (UM). We
are extremely disappointed with the use of the Sedition Act 1948 against Azmi.
This is a gross violation of his academic freedom as well as freedom of expression.
This goes against the true spirit of 'Article 10: Freedom of speech, assembly
and association' guaranteed by the
Federal Constitution of Malaysia.
The charges against
Azmi allegedly are being brought because of statement he made on the Selangor
MB crisis. Being an academic, Azmi should be free to give his professional
academic opinion on any issues rightly within his field of expertise. We feel his statements are a legitimate
comment with no intention, direct or implied, to incite hatred against anyone.
Besides
violating his rights under the Malaysian Constitution, the charges against Azmi
are also a serious violation of the 1997 UNESCO Recommendation concerning the
Status of Higher Education Teaching Personnel. They violate his rights to academic freedom of
expression and academic societal obligations. It is his duty to use his expertise
to enlighten the public on current issues related to his field. He or any other
academic must have the freedom to do so.
This latest
action taken by the government will instil fear in the academic community and
will invite questions of intent. This will indicate that free expression is not
tolerated in Malaysia and there exist no 'real' academic freedom; mitigating
the nation’s intellectual development effort. The efforts to make Malaysia an
international hub of higher education will also be compromised. All the efforts made by the government,
universities and the academics will be wasted. The reputation of Malaysian
universities, especially the University of Malaya, would slide back many years
to being third world universities in a third world country.
Therefore, in
the interest of academic rights and freedom and the future of Malaysian
academics and academia, PKAUM and MOVE sincerely demand:
1. That all
charges against Associate Professor Azmi Sharom under the Sedition Act to be
dropped.
2. That due to
the vast potential of abuse against fundamental freedoms of expression that it
carries, the Sedition Act be immediately repealed.
3. That all
branches of the government must act to ensure better future governance and continued
protection of the fundamental liberties of all Malaysians.
4. That respect
for academic rights must be improved, without which Malaysian universities will
continue to lag behind internationally.
Issued by:
Aznijar bin Ahmad Yazid, Secretary,
Persatuan Kakitangan Akademik Universiti Malaya (PKAUM) [University of Malaya
Academic Staff Association]
Rosli H Mahat, Secretary, Pergerakan
Tenaga Akademik Malaysia (GERAK)
[Malaysian Academics Movement (MOVE)]
2nd of SEPTEMBER 2014
