Kuala Lumpur, Feb. 21 (TNS): A Malaysian artist and activist has been fined and jailed for producing a caricature of the country’s Prime Minister.
Fahmi Reza’s cartoon of Najib Razak sporting clown make-up and arched eyebrows went viral during protests against Mr Najib.
The prime minister is under fire over a financial scandal involving an investment fund he founded.
A lawyer for Fahmi, 40, told the media he was “disappointed” by the decision and would appeal.
In a court in the northern city of Ipoh, the artist was jailed for a month and fined 30,000 ringgit (£5,500, $7,700).
He was found guilty of breaking laws that ban the spread of online content deemed offensive, and faces a second similar charge in another court.
Fahmi was arrested in 2016 alongside other activists and opposition leaders. They were part of protests against Mr Najib’s handling of a multi-billion dollar money-laundering scandal involving a state fund that was his brainchild.
