The Communications and Multimedia Act 1998 (CMA) has overtaken the Sedition Act 1948 as the major legal obstacle to freedom of expression in Malaysia, UK-based rights group Article 19 says.

"Article 19's legal analysis of the CMA has found that this Act contains overly broad content-related offences.

"(We urge) the Malaysian government to make amendments to the Act to ensure offences are narrowly defined and comply with international human rights standards," the group said in a statement today.

In particular, Article 19 said, Section 233(1)(a) of the CMA, which criminalises "improper use of network facilities or services", was a major concern because it created an "extremely vague offence".

The group noted that the law has been applied on online critics of the government, the monarchy and national leaders.

The law has also been used against media organisations, such as Malaysiakini and its sister organisation KiniTV, Article 19 added.

"The space for dialogue and dissent both online and offline, is increasingly closing, most notably through the use of Section 233 of the CMA.

"Frequent use of the CMA is part of a broader trend that must end and urgent amendments must be made to bring the Act into line with international freedom of expression standards," Article 19 said.

Apart from the charges against Malaysiakini, Article 19 also noted that there were other efforts to undermine press freedom in the first half of this year, such as investigations against The Star and efforts to bar reporters from the Parliament lobby.

Article 19 is a London-based international lobby group that seeks to promote Article 19 of the United Nation's Universal Declaration of Human Rights.