Ethnic-Indian Lawyer Jailed In M'sia After Protesting For Hindu Rights

[cherlapalli_jailer]

[color=#000000]
[size=4][b]Kuala Lumpur: [/b]A prominent ethnic-Indian lawyer in Malaysia was today sentenced to 30 months in prison for writing a seditious letter accusing the government of oppressing the country's minority community.[/size][/color][color=#000000]
[size=4]P Uthayakumar, 50, was sentenced to two years six months prison for writing an open letter in 2007 addressed to the then British Prime Minister Gordon Brown seeking his help to protect ethnic-Indians in the country.[/size][/color][color=#000000]
[size=4]Sessions Court Judge Ahmad Zamzani Mohd Zain ruled that Hindu Rights Action Force (Hindraf) founder Uthayakumar had failed to raise reasonable doubt.[/size][/color][color=#000000]
[size=4]He found Uthayakumar guilty of the charge, adding that his actions under the Seditious Act 1948 were a serious offense, The Star online reported.[/size][/color][color=#000000]
[size=4]"Would you like to say anything in mitigation, though you have so far taken the stand not to submit, in protest," the judge asked Uthayakumar before handing out the sentence.[/size][/color][color=#000000]
[size=4]Uthayakumar had earlier refused to submit his defence, claiming that it was in protest to how Indians in Malaysia were being treated.[/size][/color][color=#000000]
[size=4]Uthayakumar remained stoic when his sentence was read and chose not to apply for a stay of execution. He was sent to Kajang prison.[/size][/color][color=#000000]
[size=4]The former Internal Security Act detainee, was charged on December 11, 2007, with publishing a seditious letter on the Police Watch Malaysia website addressed to Brown.[/size][/color][color=#000000]
[size=4]He had made the declaratory application (to declare the Sedition Act unconstitutional), in a bid to have the charge against him under the Act to be revoked and the prosecution in the proceedings in the Sessions Court be struck out.[/size][/color]