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Malaysian artist charged for depicting PM Najib Razak as clown
Agence France Presse - June 6, 2016
Fahmi Reza's caricatures of Mr Najib went viral earlier this year, and posters and stickers bearing the images have also appeared in public places, earning the designer-activist comparisons to street-art provocateurs such as Banksy.
He was charged under a section of Malaysian communications and multimedia laws that forbid disseminating online content deemed to "annoy, abuse, threaten, or harass" others.
The 38-year-old artist faces a possible one-year prison sentence and a $16,580 fine, said his attorney, Syahredzan Johan. "This is essentially criminalising [free] expression," Mr Johan said.
Mr Reza pleaded not guilty after the charge was read out in court. His lawyer said police were also investigating the artist for sedition.
In a Facebook posting Monday, Mr Reza vowed to "defend my rights to criticise the corrupt rulers by using art as a weapon".
He was warned by police previously to stop posting the images, which show Prime Minister Najib with powder-white clown make-up, evilly arched eyebrows and a garish blood-red mouth.
Malaysian Government accused of silencing critics
Mr Najib is battling accusations that billions of dollars were stolen from a state-owned development fund he oversees, and is under pressure for accepting a mysterious $928 million overseas payment.
The Prime Minister denies accusations the huge payment was siphoned from the struggling fund. But he has fuelled anger by curbing investigations, purging government figures who have demanded transparency and clamping down on media reporting of the affair.
Even before the corruption allegations emerged a year ago, Mr Najib's government had moved to silence critics following a 2013 election setback. Dozens of government opponents including opposition politicians have been investigated for, or charged with, a range of offences over the past three years, typically sedition.
The campaign has drawn growing warnings from international human rights groups that free expression and democratic rights in Malaysia are under severe threat. In March, an ABC Four Corners crew was detained by Malaysian police after trying to question Prime Minister Najib over the corruption scandal.
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