The Leaderboard: Khalid Abu Bakar

The Leaderboard profiles the people behind the policies of the Asia-Pacific.

Who is he?

Khalid Abu Bakar is the Inspector-General of Malaysia’s police force, a post he has held since 2013 after two years as deputy inspector-general. Khalid has held numerous positions in the police since 1976, including as director of homeland security and public order at the police headquarters.

Why is he in the news?

In his position, Khalid has been at the center of Malaysia’s growing crackdown on dissent. The government has stepped up its use of the controversial Sedition Act, which dates back to Malaysia’s colonial days and allows authorities to punish any type of conduct deemed “seditious.” Since the conviction of opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim in February, the government has used the Act to justify the detention of over 120 opposition politicians and activists.

Khalid has also drawn the ire from activists both within Malaysia and abroad over his clamping down on social media use, traditionally a relative safe haven for expressing dissenting opinions in Malaysia. Shortly after Anwar’s conviction, Khalid took to Twitter to warn activists not to question the ruling, and subsequently began a campaign to monitor social media feeds for potential dissent. Famed cartoonist and activist Zunar was charged with nine counts of sedition in early April over a tweet alleging charges against Anwar were politically motivated.

What can we expect from him?

Khalid is known to be close to the ruling Barisan Nasional coalition and the government of Prime Minister Najib Razak. As Najib recently pledged to not only retain but also strengthen the Sedition Act, a reversal of his earlier promise to repeal the law, expect Khalid to intensify the police’s crackdown against activists and critics of the government in the coming months.

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