Zunar is best known for his provocative cartoons that lampoon issues of high-level abuse of government power and corruption. His portraits are published both in books and on the Malaysiakini news website, one of the country’s few independent news publications. Malaysian police and authorities have claimed on several occasions that Zunar’s cartoons are “detrimental to public order” and run afoul of the country’s sedition law.

The latest legal threat against Zunar comes amid a government crackdown on dissent, a heavy-handed response to the long-ruling United Malays National Organization’s waning popularity and legitimacy, a theme that Zunar’s cartoons have frequently portrayed. The cartoonist has been temporarily detained twice–in 2010 and 2015–on accusations of sedition in relation to his cartoons. At least five of his cartoon books, compilations of original contents and his work previously published online, have been banned or confiscated by authorities. His Kuala Lumpur-based office and those of the printers who produce his volumes have been raided several times.

Despite these threats, Zunar continues to draw, challenging the same forces that seek to silence him. He currently faces nine counts of sedition and up to 43 years in jail in connection with nine critical tweets, including one with an embedded cartoon portrait of Prime Minister Najib Razak acting as a court judge, that he posted on February 10, 2015, in connection with a court decision to jail the country’s main opposition leader on sodomy charges. Zunar’s sedition trial is scheduled for late 2015.

Zunar is the first full-time cartoonist to receive the Committee to Project Journalists’ International Press Freedom Award. While the attack on the staff of Charlie Hebdo in Paris in January 2015 showed the risks some cartoonists face in reprisal for their work, the legal harassment Zunar endures is indicative of the type of threats that outspoken satirists contend with around the world. CPJ highlighted these threats in its 2015 report, “Drawing the Line,” in which Zunar’s cartoons and case were featured.

In 2011 and 2015, Human Rights Watch honored Zunar with its Hellman/Hammett Award. In 2011, he was also the recipient of the “Courage in Editorial Cartooning Award” by the Washington-based Cartoonist Rights Network International.

Image and text reposted from CPJ.org

Statement from Malaysia political cartoonist, Zunar. Zunar vs the police and the Malaysian government (Unlawful Detention under The Sedition Act): An appeal at the Appellate Court on the 18th June 2013

The Appellate Court has set 18th of June to hear my appeal on the decision of the Kuala Lumpur High Court’s ruling regarding detention of me under the Sedition Act three years ago.

In his ruling on July last year, the Kuala Lumpur High Court Judge Justice Vazeer Alam Mydin Meera rules that the detention was lawful, even though in the other part of the judgment the court had instructed the police to return all my books and drawing and pay the damages.

On the 24th September 2010, I was arrested and jailed for two days over the publishing of my then new comic book, Cartoon-O-Phobia. I was investigated under the Sedition Act, which carries the maximum of three-year jail if found guilty.

The detention was made several hours prior to the launching of the comic book.

I then filed a suit to challenge the Malaysian government on the grounds that the arrest was made in bad faith, mala fide, and not according to the law. This is based on the fact that when the arrest was made, the books were not available in the market yet.

In my suit, I claimed general, aggravated and exemplary damages, losses from an art collage and the 66 books confiscated during the raid, and loss of earnings from the inability to sell books.

I am represented by R Sivarasa, N Surendran, Latheefa Koya and Fadiah Nadwa Fikri.

Zunar, Political cartoonist – 12 June 2013

Fragile States is an exploration of the physical and psychological experiences of persecution and forced displacement. The artists featured in the exhibition share a common experience of having to leave their country of origin after facing threats, violent assault, imprisonment or torture as a result of using their creative practice to voice the concerns of their communities.

Featured Artists: Owen Maseko (Zimbabwe), Zunar (Malaysia), Kianoush Ramezani (Iran), Chaw Ei Thein (Burma), Kardash Onnig (Armenia), Khaled Barakeh (Syria), Arahmaiani Feisal (Indonesia) and Issa Nyaphaga (Cameroon).

Admission by donation (suggested donation $10 – $20) to freeDimensional. fD supports culture in the service of free expression, justice and equality by protecting critical voices through creative safe haven residency programs, mobilizing critical resources and services and quick-response funding to remove cultural activists from dangerous situations. fD will receive 60% of proceeds from exhibition sales to further regional artist safety initiatives and to support the needs of artists in distress.

My latest cartoon book,”Lawak & Lawan” to protest Malaysian draconian printing act

My latest cartoon book, Lawak & Lawan (Fun & Fight) is produced to protest the Printing Presses and Publications Act 1984 (PPPA). Among cited in this Act under section, 11 (2) requires the name of the printer to be printed in each publication. Failure to comply can be punished with imprisonment not exceeding one year and a fine not exceeding RM5000 ( about USD1800) or both.

Before this I have always complied the requirements by the Act to include the name of the printer in my books. What happens from that is that the printers, often times, get raided by the authorities. For example, back in 2009, the printer who printed “Gedung Kartun” was raided by the Home Ministry officials. In 2010, the printer who printed “Cartoon-O-Phobia” was raided by 20 policemen. In the raid, they searched the place and seized the printing plates.

It was reported that the printers were threatened that their licenses will be revoked if they continue printing my books in the future. There were also reports of these ministry officers demanding money. The actions by the government had instilled fear in the printers from printing my books.

For the book prior to this, “1 Moolaysia”, I had to search for theree months before finally found a brave printer who was willing to print my books.

These events proved that the requirement by the PPPA to include the printer’s name in books is used by the government not for the purpose of controlling but more of restricting freedom of speech by ‘killing’ books and printed materials that are critical of the Malaysian government.

Due to that, I have deleted the name of the printer in my new book “Lawak & Lawan” as a protest. I know this would be contrary to the law, but I have a moral obligation to fight against draconian laws such as the PPPA.

I am ready to face legal risk for my action.

I also know that, as a result, this book will be tough to sell since it cannot be sold in public premises, but I am also willing to bear that risk.

*****
Background:
Zunar’s cartoons unravel the issues of the Altantuya murder, the Scorpene scandal, election fraud, corruption, injustice, abuse of power and waste of public funds by the Malaysian gevernment.

Zunar’s six cartoon books are currently banned by the Malaysian government for allegedly “having contents that can incite public hatred and stoke riots against the government”.

Zunar was arrested on the 24th September 2010 under the Sedition Act for allegedly publishing a ‘seditious’ cartoon book.

Zunar was the recipient of the “Courage in Editorial Cartoon” from the Cartoonist Rights Network International, Washington DC in 2011.

A statement by Malaysian political cartoonist Zunar in response to the court ruling regarding his detention –  1 st August 2012

I am extremely disappointed with the Malaysian High Court’s ruling that my detention under the Sedition Act in September 2010 was according to the law.

On the 24th of September 2010, I was arrested and jailed for two days just a few hours before the launching of my new comic book, Cartoon-O-Phobia.

I then filed a suit to challenge the Malaysian government on the grounds that the arrest was made in bad faith, mala fide, and unlawful.

But on the 31^st of July 2012, the Kuala Lumpur High Court had held that the detention was lawful, based on the grounds that the police officers had reasonable grounds to suspect that the book was seditious. In the ruling, the high court clearly encourages police to use the power to detain anyone solely based on mere suspicion. This will help the Malaysian government to use more criminal laws to stop me from producing more cartoons that expose the corruptions by the Malaysian government.

The arrest was part of the modus operandi by the government to stop me from producing political cartoons unfavorable to them.

Prior to that, they started by confiscating my books in bookstores, but I continued to draw. That prompted the authority to raid my office, raid the printers and threatening them.

When all these still failed to stop me, they banned six of my books on the grounds that the contents are detrimental to public order. Finally, the detained me as a last resort.

The court has denied my fundamental right as a political cartoonist which contradicts the Malaysian Constitution that guarantees the freedom of expression to its citizen.

– Zunar, Political Cartoonist

The recipient of “Courage in Editorial Cartoons 2011” conferred by the Cartoonist Rights Network International in Washington D.C

I would like to refer to the ruling made by the Election Commission of Malaysia which bans the use of cartoons in the campaigns for the up-coming General Election. (General election’s date in Malaysia can only be decided by the Prime Minister, but must be called before the current term ends in March 2013).

The banning of cartoons during the election is comical and ludicrous. This is because cartooning is a legally-practiced medium in Malaysia and therefore the Commission does not have the right to forbid its use. Moreover, this is contradicting to the freedom of expression as provided to all citizens in Malaysian Constitution.

Malaysia has been ruled by the same political party since she gained independence 55 years ago. Since then, cartoons have been used as part of election campaign tool since the first general election. Why ban it now? It is no coincidence that this ruling comes after the rise of young Malaysian cartoonists using cartoons to criticize the ruling government.

I call for the Commission to withdraw this rule or it will become another Malaysian product of jokes to the world
community. Recently, Malaysia has become a laughing stock due to the action on cartoonists such as banning of comic books, the detention of cartoonist under the Criminal Act, as experienced by me.

Nevertheless, I would like to announce that I will be leading a group of cartoonists, the Kumpulan Kartunis Independen (KKI) and will be actively involved before and during the next election campaign. We will be opening our own Cartoonist Operations Centre and will be moving as a group in a van while campaigning for the coming election. Our focus is to expose fraud and corruption, misuse of public funds by the current government – such as Scorpene Scandal, NFC, the domeneering of the PM’s wife, etc. The message-laden cartoons will be distributed in various forms: brochures, posters, banners, videos, to name a few.

I am ready to face the consequences!

Zunar
10 June 2012

BILBAO, Spain. November 10, 2011 – 

ZUNAR a.k.a. Zulkiflee Anwar Haque, who has been drawing  editorial cartoons for the past 20 years in Malaysia, was awarded the “Courage To Fight Censorship” Award at the VI. Festival Against Censorship.

ZUNAR uses his drawing pen as a weapon to fight state  corruption and abuse of power. He has turned the spotlight on     local public-interest issues such as the politically explosive  (literally!) and unsolved murder of a Mongolian woman, the  political conspiracy against the former-deputy-prime-minister-  turned-Opposition-Leader Anwar Ibrahim, the domineering  wife of the present prime minister, and the shady Scorpene submarine purchases that are now being investigated in France.

He started acquiring a reputation as a critical, no-holds-barred cartoonist during the “Reformation” period in Malaysia. Sparked by the sacking of the then deputy prime minister Anwar Ibrahim, which shocked and arrested the nation, the people’s uprising provided him much fodder for ‘comment’ through his cartoons.

Unsurprisingly, the government-controlled national newspapers have blacked-out his cartoons since and he has to resort to publishing them online. On the bright side, no less than the country’s leading source of independent news and views, Malaysiakini.com, is publishing them on a regular basis.

To see video of ZUNAR’s latest exhibition at the VI. Festival Against Censorship visit: http://bit.ly/tYP1Wa