PUTRAJAYA (Jan 10): The government is to enact new legislation to protect the sanctity of the institution of the monarchy from being humiliated and attacked by irresponsible people, Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Datuk Liew Vui Keong said today.

He said some existing laws would also be amended for the purpose.

“Ours is a constitutional monarchy. So, the government must always ensure that our rulers are protected from unfounded slander and attacks by irresponsible people,” he told reporters after delivering the 2019 new year message to staff of the Legal Affairs Division in the Prime Minister’s Department.

Liew said the laws must provide for the punishment of the irresponsible people who did not respect the institution of the monarchy.

“The objective is to ensure that our constitutional monarchy will always be protected from all kinds of attack,” he said. 

In formulating the new laws, the government would be looking at the constitutional monarchies in some Commonwealth countries, he said. 

Liew said he would bring up the matter during his meeting with the respective legal heads and secretaries-general of all ministries at the end of this month.

The meeting would also look into the laws that had to be repealed and amended at the parliament sessions in 2019, he said. 

Liew said the government would probably be looking also at the punishment side because, at the moment, the punishment for certain offences against the monarchy “was on the low side” (lenient).