Recording cops in public areas not a crime, says Lawyers for Liberty

PETALING JAYA: It is not an offence to record videos or make live broadcasts of the police during raids or arrests in public places, says Lawyers for Liberty.

Its director Zaid Malek said the claim by Home Minister Datuk Seri Hamzah Zainudin in a parliamentary reply had no legal basis in Malaysian law.

“Recording or live-streaming is also not an obstruction of police officers doing their duty as defined in Section 186 of the Penal Code.

“We also urge the Prime Minister and Cabinet to direct the Home Minister to publicly retract this unacceptable threat against the Malaysian public, in the interest of accountability and the maintenance of integrity and standards in the police force,” he said in a statement on Tuesday (Aug 2).

Zaid added that Section 233 of the Communications and Multimedia Act did not encompass the act of recording the actions of police officers or sharing it online, in response to the ministry’s written parliamentary response.

On Monday (Aug 1), Hamzah said members of the public could run afoul of the law if they use their mobile phones to record footage of police when they are discharging their duties.

"Taking photographs or video recordings is not an offence.

"However, it becomes a crime if a member of the public records a video or does a live broadcast using a mobile phone when police are carrying out a raid or an arrest in a public area," the ministry said in a written reply to a question raised by Lim Lip Eng (PH-Kepong) in the Dewan Rakyat on Monday.

The ministry noted that action could be taken for obstructing a public officer from discharging his duty and interrupting investigations.

The ministry added that such acts could also breach Section 233 of the Communications and Multimedia Act if posting such recordings is done with the intention of disturbing others.