Published November 10, 2008

Govt to appeal Raja Petra ruling

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(KUALA LUMPUR) Malaysia is to appeal the release of leading blogger Raja Petra Kamaruddin, who was detained under controversial internal security laws and freed last week, according to reports yesterday.

Raja Petra was released by the High Court last Friday after it ruled that the government had acted outside its powers by ordering him to serve two years in detention without trial.

'I am disappointed but I respect the court decision,' Home Minister Syed Hamid Albar told the New Straits Times newspaper.

However, he said that his ministry would direct the attorney-general to appeal against the decision, the paper reported.

'We need to find out how the court interpreted the home minister's discretionary power' as laid out under the country's tough Internal Security Act (ISA), he added.

Raja Petra, founder of the popular Malaysia Today website, which has outraged top leaders with its stream of critical stories, was detained in September for writing articles that allegedly insulted Islam.

Raja Petra is best known for his articles on politics, and has already been charged with sedition and defamation for linking Deputy Prime Minister Najib Razak and his wife to the sensational murder of a Mongolian woman.



The ISA allows for renewable, two-year periods of detention without trial. -- AFP