Case History: Adam Adli Abdul Halim
On 22 February 2018, human rights defender Adam Adli Abdul Halim, popularly known as Adam Adli, was acquitted of a sedition charge in relation to a speech he made at a post-election forum at the Kaula Lampur and Selangor Chinese Assembly Hall on 13 May 2013. In his speech he urged people to protest the widely contested 2013 general election results
On 8 September 2015, human rights defenders Ms Maria Chin Abdullah, Ms Mandeep Singh and Mr Adam Adli Abdul Halim were among nine activists who were charged under the Peaceful Assembly Act for organising and taking part in an allegedly unlawful assembly held in Kuala Lumpur on 28 March 2015.
Adam Adli Abdul Halim campaigns for the protection of student rights and academic freedom. He was sentenced to a year in jail on 19 September 2014 on charges of sedition in relation to a speech he made at a post-election forum, where he urged people to take to the street to protest the widely contested election results. He appealed the conviction and is currently out on bail.
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- 23 February 2018 : Adam Adli acquitted of sedition charge
- 10 September 2015 : Human rights defenders face charges
- 3 September 2015 : Human rights defenders questioned following peaceful Bersih 4 rally
- 4 August 2015 : Arrest of HRDs and organisers of peaceful protests
- 31 July 2015 : Travel ban imposed on four human rights defenders
On 22 February 2018, human rights defender Adam Adli Abdul Halim, popularly known as Adam Adli, was acquitted of a sedition charge in relation to a speech he made at a post-election forum at the Kaula Lampur and Selangor Chinese Assembly Hall on 13 May 2013. In his speech he urged people to protest the widely contested 2013 general election results.
On 19 November 2014, the Sessions Court found Adam Adli guilty of the charge and sentenced him to 12 months in prison. In February 2016, the High Court rejected his appeal and upheld his conviction but substituted the prison term with a fine of RM 5,000.
On 22 February 2018, the Court of Appeal bench heard Adam Adli’s appeal and granted the defender an acquittal with the judge stating that “the conviction was unsafe due to several misdirections in law.” By unanimous decision, the Court of Appeal bench set aside the conviction by the trial judge, which had been upheld by the High Court.
Front Line Defenders welcomes the decision to acquit Adam Adli of sedition charges as it believes they were related to his peaceful and legitimate human rights work.
On 8 September 2015, human rights defenders Ms Maria Chin Abdullah, Ms Mandeep Singh and Mr Adam Adli Abdul Halim were among nine activists who were charged under the Peaceful Assembly Act for organising and taking part in an allegedly unlawful assembly held in Kuala Lumpur on 28 March 2015.
On 8 September 2015, three magistrates accepted the charges against the human rights defenders and the other six activists related to the organisation and participation in an allegedly unlawful assembly, which was held in Kuala Lumpur on 28 March 2015. However, the lawyers for the human rights defenders state that the assembly did not violate the Peaceful Assembly Act. They were granted bail on condition of payment of 500 Malaysian Ringgit and one surety each (approximately 100 euro). Their trial is scheduled to begin on 16 October 2015.
While the charges are based on events that took place in March 2015, they were brought immediately after protests organised by Bersih in Kuala Lumpur, Kuching and Kota Kinabalu on 29 and 30 August 2015. The protests, named Bersih 4, demanded institutional reforms and the resignation of Prime Minister Mohd Najib bin Abdul Razak, in connection with allegations of financial mismanagement of a state investment firm and embezzlement. The organisers estimated that ten thousand people attended the protest.Adam Adli Abd Halim, Syukri Rezab and Mandeep Singh
On 2 September 2015, the police questioned Maria Chin Abdullah, Mandeep Singh, Adam Adli Abdul Halim and other Bersih members who organised the Bersih 4 rally. The police questioned them for two and a half hours about the financial sources for the rally, as well as its planning and execution. They were further questioned about the launch announcement of the rally on August 14 and the personal details of each committee member. However, the human rights defenders exercised their right not to answer the questions.
On 2 September 2015, police questioned seven human rights defenders regarding the two-day Bersih 4 rally which took place in Kuala Lumpur on 29-30 August 2015.
Those who were questioned, Maria Chin Abdullah, Sarajun Hoda, Masjaliza Hamzah, Fadiah Nadwa, Farhana Halim, Mandeep Singh and Adam Adli Abdul Halim, are all organisers of the Bersih 4 rally. The protest was held to demand institutional reforms and the resignation of Prime Minister Mohd Najib bin Abdul Razak, in connection with allegations of financial mismanagement of a state investment firm and embezzlement.
On 2 September 2015, the police questioned the organisers for two and a half hours about the financial sources for the rally, as well as its planning and execution. They were further questioned about the launch announcement of the rally on August 14 and the personal details of each committee member. However, the human rights defenders refused to answer the questions, as is their right.
The seven human rights defenders were summoned for questioning in relation to a number of complaints which were filed by the police against the organisers of the rally. They are being investigated for allegedly concealing plans to commit an offence, attempting to commit activity detrimental to parliamentary democracy, and unlawful assembly, which are charges under Sections 120, 124C and 141 of the Penal Code.
The members and organisers of Bersih rallies have been subjected to continuous harassment due to their work. On 31 July 2015, Messrs Adam Adli Abdul Halim, Syukri Rezab and Mandeep Singh were arrested and Ms Ambiga Sreenavasan was summoned for questioning in relation to their role in organising peaceful protests. Although they all were released afterwards, they are still under investigation on charges of carrying out activities detrimental to parliamentary democracy, under Article 124 of the Penal Code, a charge which carry a prison term of up to 20 years.
On 23 July 2015, travel bans were imposed on Ms Datuk Ambiga Sreenevasan, Maria Chin Abdullah, Mr Hishamuddin Rais and Adam Adli Abdul Halim for their involvement in the organisation of protest activities.
On 31 July 2015, three human rights defenders were arrested and a fourth one was summoned for questioning in relation to their role organising peaceful protests. Messrs Adam Adli Abd Halim, Syukri Rezab and Mandeep Singh will be held overnight at Jinjang detention centre before being brought before a court for a remand hearing on 1 August 2015 at 10 a.m. Ms Ambiga Sreenavasan was summoned and questioned but subsequently released. All four human rights defenders are under investigation on charges of carrying out activities detrimental to parliamentary democracy, under Article 124 of the Penal Code, a charge which carry a prison term of up to 20 years.
Adam Adli Abd Halim and Ambiga Sreenavasan, together with two other human rights defenders, were informed of a travel ban imposed on them on 23 July 2015.
On 23 July 2015, travel bans were imposed on human rights defenders Ms Datuk Ambiga Sreenevasan, Ms Maria Chin Abdullah, Mr Hishamuddin Rais and Mr Adam Adli Abdul Halim.
Though Malaysia has long had a vibrant civil society,the political space has largely remained controlled by the same ruling elite since independence in 1957. The 2013 elections were a critical turning point, as Malaysians took to the streets to protest the entrenched political elites as well as the Internal Security Act (ISA), which was established in 1960 to quash dissent and monitor society.
New measures were soon introduced, which are now being used more forthrightly and which essentially seek to reproduce the impact of the ISA. One measure has been the introduction of the Prevention of Terrorism Act (POTA) which is similar to anti-terrorism legislation around the world, granting the state extraordinary powers of investigation and surveillance. The second was reviving the Sedition Act, first introduced in 1959 but seldom used until recently. Like many increasingly repressive governments, the Malaysian rulers are using these pieces of "security" legislation to target human rights defenders.
On 23 July 2015, Datuk Ambiga Sreenevasan, Maria Chin Abdullah, Hishamuddin Rais and Adam Adli Abdul Halim were informed that, if they wished to travel, they would need to inform the nearest Department of Immigration Office. Ambiga was informed by the Immigration Department that she received a travel ban which covers travel to the east of Malaysia. She had travelled overseas the previous month and she has yet to be informed as to why she currently faces a travel ban.
Previously, Maria Chin Abdullah had been prevented from entering Sabah, while Ambiga found her name on the immigration blacklist of both Sabah and Sarawak when she tried to visit the states in November in 2014 and in 2011, respectively.
