You can't simply shoot your mouth off because you have the right to free speech, just as you can't just shoot people just because you can carry a gun, cautions Communications and Multimedia Minister Salleh Said Keruak.

"Americans argue that the right to bear arms is written in the US Constitution and, therefore, cannot be taken away from them. To do so would be unconstitutional.

"However, while you may have the right to bear arms, this does not mean you also have the right to shoot someone without just cause, such as to defend yourself against physical attack," Salleh said in a blog posting today.

Similarly he said, freedom of speech must be used maturely.

He cited the example of recent reports on the public ban on Christmas celebrations in Brunei as an abuse of freedom of speech and freedom of press.

The reports on the ban, Salleh claimed in his blog, have been proven false, but its damage to Brunei was irreversible.

'Differentiate news from opinion'

"While we hide behind media freedom and the right to report the news, we end up denying people the right to the truth and we subject Brunei to an injustice.

"This is not what media freedom is about," the Sabah senator said.

Salleh also said that the people must differentiate news from opinion.

However, it is not clear as to which news report proving the ban to be false the minister was referring to.

Previously it was reported that there was a public ban on Christmas celebrations in Brunei, with Christians only allowed to celebrate in church compounds or their own homes.

Muslims caught celebrating Christmas, and those who violate the ban could be jailed for five years.

This comes after Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah announced last year the introduction of hudud, the syariah penal code, in the country.

However, the Brunei Herald reported today that the country's Christians were respecting the restrictions and celebrating Christmas as usual.