He told the Dewan Negara sitting Thursday that the government would consider formulating the act if it was deemed necessary and suitable after the Sedition Act 1948 was retained.
“The government will not be hasty in introducing any laws without discussing with each interested party to ensure the law is in line with the current situation and is not against the country’s Constitution,” he said.
He was replying to the original question by Senator Datuk S. Vigneswaran who wanted to know if Malaysia would be introducing a Racism Act or Anti-Discrimination Act to tackle the worsening problem of racism during the question and answer session here.
The National Harmony Act was proposed to be formulated to replace the Sedition Act 1948, nonetheless Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak announced recently that the Sedition Act would be retained and strengthened to cover national public order.
Umno deputy president Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin said in his winding up session at the 2014 Umno General Assembly that the government needed to reconsider the proposed act after the Prime Minister’s announcement to keep the Sedition Act 1948.
Joseph said the government did not propose to create a Racism Act or an Anti-Discrimination Act as the Sedition Act 1948 could adequately combat issues relating to racism and so on.
— BERNAMA
