LFL director Zaid Malek said protecting the Malay rulers was not a legitimate reason to keep the act on the statute books as the law could also be used to silence government critics.

“Many facets of government administration have some manner of royal involvement, such as amendments to the Federal Constitution or certain appointments.

“The involvement of the rulers in any decision, no matter how slight, could result in any comments or criticism of the government being considered ‘seditious’,” he said in a statement.

Zaid also said that the Sedition Act robbed people of their basic freedom and had been used as a weapon against activists and government critics under the guise of preventing abuse of the so-called “3R issues” (race, religion and royalty).

“This dangerous law has no place in a modern democracy. There is just no way to salvage the Sedition Act. The risk of it being used against the rakyat is far too great,” he said.

Adding that most Commonwealth nations had discarded similar laws, he slammed the PH-led government for not fulfilling its election promise to repeal the Sedition Act, describing it as “an appalling betrayal” and “cynical opportunism”.

It was recently reported that the Cabinet had approved the process for amending the Sedition Act to ensure that 3R issues are effectively managed.