The Raja Permaisuri deactivated her Twitter account for personal reasons, reactivated briefly, and has now deactivated again.
Raja Permaisuri Agong Tunku Azizah Aminah Maimunah Iskandariah reactivated her Twitter account in an attempt to dissuade the police from acting against those accused of insulting her.
Tunku Azizah had deleted her @cheminahsayang account on Wednesday, triggering the #AmpunTuanku movement launched by patriotic Malaysians to convince her to return to the social media platform she had left due to suspected online harassment.
The Queen reiterated today that she did not leave the platform because she was angered by toxic comments about her but added that her return was motivated by her displeasure with police action against those accused of insulting her.
“As I said, I deactivated not because I was upset by comments made but for personal reasons…but today I am truly upset that police have detained those people…through the years my husband and I have never made any police report on the bad things said about us… it’s a free country,” she wrote.
In a tweet yesterday, Tunku Azizah had urged netizens not to make any police reports and said: “Tuanku Permaisuri hopes everybody will respect what Tuanku wants and the Tuanku Permaisuri also did not want the people to quickly come to conclusion without knowing the real matter”.
Tunku Azizah said she was shocked and disturbed to learn that some have been arrested for allegedly insulting her, prompting her to reactivate her account to demonstrate to the police that there is no need for them to react to the complaints about her departure from Twitter.
She said her daughter, Tengku Puteri Afzan Aminah Hafizatullah Al-Sultan Abdullah, alerted her of the police action against those who allegedly insulted her.
“Afzan alerted me: ‘Mama, cops arrested two people’.
“I was sad and angry and immediately activated my Twitter. I had no intention for them to be arrested.
“I have personally told the palace to inform the police not to take action. I repeat again (sic), I deactivated not because of them,” she said.
The Raja Permaisuri then urged the public to not overreact.
“Chill, people…like my daughters always tell me… ‘Chill, Mama,’ whenever I am upset!” she wrote.
“Although the whole time I and my husband have been demeaned, accused, mocked, and insulted in cari.com, we both have not lodged any police reports…and I have never been sad when I read this – in fact, I laugh – because Allah knows who I am!”
Yesterday, Tengku Puteri Afzan shared a social media post in which she said the Raja Permaisuri had not deleted her Twitter account due to alleged online harassment.
Instead, she said Tunku Azizah told her that she had done it for “personal reasons” and appealed for the public not to lodge police reports against those that other online users have identified as responsible for her departure.
The appeal came too late, however, as the police have already opened several sedition investigations in response to reports lodged about remarks against the Raja Permaisuri, including Parti Sosialis Malaysia (PSM) activist Khalid Mohd Ismath who was arrested at 10.30pm last night.
Khalid, 29, was taken to the Dang Wangi police headquarters and had his mobile phone confiscated for investigation.
In a Facebook posting yesterday, Khalid claimed that his photo was being spread on social media, alongside accusations that he had posted upsetting tweets to Tunku Azizah.
He vehemently denied tweets of any sort from him to the Queen.
“I have already checked, there is not one single tweet of mine on Tuanku Permaisuri’s Twitter.
“Hopefully those who defame me are placed by God among those who have received forgiveness. But I would not forgive until that person apologises to me directly,” he wrote.
The police have abandoned their attempt to seek a remand to further detain Khalid and released him on police bail today, following criticism by NGOs and government MPs who pointed out that there is a moratorium on the Sedition Act.
Tunku Azizah came under unprovoked attack over her tweets promoting optimism, positivity and good relations prior to the deactivation of her @cheminahsayang account.
During the Merdeka Day parade, she was also criticised on Twitter for taking photographs of the event, which she later explained was done on the instructions of her husband, Yang di-Pertuan Agong Al-Sultan Abdullah Ri’ayatuddin Al-Mustafa Billah Shah.
At a time of increasing racial polarisation and negativity, Tunku Azizah and her husband Yang di-Pertuan Agong Al-Sultan Abdullah Ri’ayatuddin Al-Mustafa Billah Shah have been beacons of national hope and unity.
Just before her coronation, Tunku Azizah spoke in defence of the country’s multiracial and multicultural diversity by pointing out that she is of mixed descent and is part Chinese.
During recent celebrations, the Agong also spoke out along with fellow Malay Rulers about the dangers of polarisation and extreme politics in the country.
In the latest development, the Queen’s Twitter page is no longer accessible.
Earlier report: Sept 12, Malaysians Rallying to Get Queen to Reactivate Twitter Account