Plea of guilty over article

Press, 12 October 1985, Page 3

Plea of guilty over article

NZPA-Reuter Kuala Lumpur A "Far Eastern Economic Review” correspondent, James Clad, pleaded guilty yesterday to two charges under Malaysia's Official Secrets Act, over an article he wrote about the country’s sensitive ties with Peking. Clad, aged 38, a former New Maland diplomat, was charged in a magistrate’s court with receiving, possessing and divulging secret information and of knowing that this contravened the act. He was freed on $3551 bail, and will be sentenced on October 14. His July article quoted a confidential Government report on ties with China, which the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Mahathir Mohamad, is due to visit next month, saying it called for restrictions to be eased on Malaysian Chinese visiting China. The State prosecutor called for a sentence that reflected “the seriousness of the offence” but defence counsel said that Clad wrote only to inform and had nothing against Malaysia. Clad, who has worked in Malaysia for the "Review”

for two' year?, is the first foreign journalist to be charged under the act, which/ was tightened last year to provide for a maximum .seven-year jail term and/or a $7lOO fine. Malaysia does not censor news but it can control all aspects of news reporting through the act. Police questioned Clad in August after the Hong Kong-based “Review” published the article, Malaysia has long been suspicious of Peking's intentions in south-east Asia and only established diplomatic links in 1974. It accuses China of giving moral support to the few remaining guerrillas of the outlawed Communist Party of The guerrillas, officially numbered at 200, are the remnants of the fighters, known as “CTs” (Communist terrorists), who sought to take over the country in the 1950 s and 19605. They were rooted out of their hideouts in Malaysia’s dense, hilly jungles by British troops and later by Malaysian Government forces after independence in 1957.