Don’t Touch the King

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A former Malaysian prime minister was charged on Tuesday with sedition over campaign remarks he made about the nation’s previous king that critics said were insulting, Al Jazeera reported.

Muhyiddin Yassin, who led Malaysia for 17 months from 2020 to 2021, pleaded not guilty to the charge at court in the northeastern state of Kelantan. The court will deliver a verdict after hearings in November.

Muhyiddin, 77, chairs Malaysia’s opposition coalition, Perikatan Nasional, a conservative, Malay-centric alliance.

Speaking to a crowd of supporters at a by-election campaign on Aug. 15, he commented on former King Sultan Abdullah Sultan Ahmad Shah’s decision not to appoint him as prime minister following the 2022 parliamentary election, which produced a hung parliament. Anwar Ibrahim was chosen for the top job.

“If we followed the Constitution, I had a total that was more than enough to become the prime minister. I don’t want to bring it up, but it is a record of history,” said Muhyiddin. Sultan Abdullah did not respond to the politician’s comments.

His remarks sparked controversy and allegations of insulting the monarchy. A few days later, Muhyiddin reiterated that he made a “factual statement that was not intended to insult the monarchy or contain any seditious tendency.”

Malaysia’s unique monarchial set-up sees kings from its peninsular states rotate every five years. They mostly hold ceremonial power but are also tasked with appointing prime ministers. They are held in deep respect by the country’s Malay majority.

Malaysia does not have an explicit lèse-majesté law like that of Thailand, but legislation inherited from British colonial rule has been invoked to suppress comments on the monarchy and other speech that could jeopardize national unity.

Critics have said this amounted to cracking down on freedom of expression, Nikkei Asia reported.

If convicted, Muhyiddin faces a sentence of up to three years in prison. At the same time, he faces charges of corruption that he has described as politically motivated.