Page 35 - Conflict, Terrorism, and the Media In Asia

24 Benjamin Cole
toughest censorship laws in the world. The Paris-based Reporters Without
Borders rated Malaysia number 122 out of 167 states in its 2004 worldwide index
of press freedom (Reporters Without Borders 2004). Under the Printing Presses
and Publications Act, the Home Ministry is responsible for licensing newspapers.
This enables the home minister to impose restrictions on the media such as sus-
pending or revoking publishing permits, in the name of national security. As a
result, the mainstream media largely functions as an agent of stability in Malaysia.
Government controls are evident both in the frequency with which government
press releases and speeches are reported, the high prominence that they are
accorded, and also in the restrictions which are imposed on the opposition media.
One of the most high profile targets has been Harakah Daily, the newspaper of
the mainstream Islamist political party, Parti Islam si Malaysia (PAS), which is
the only major Malay and English language media forum for opposition views,
and which had a circulation rivalling that of mainstream newspapers. It has been
warned by senior government leaders not to print ‘slanderous’ remarks and to
limit its distribution to PAS party members only. As a result, the newspaper is
generally no longer sold openly. In March 2000, the government went even fur-
ther by stipulating that Harakah Daily could publish only twice a month instead
of twice a week (United States Embassy Stockholm 2002). Harakah Daily was
fortunate in many respects, because some other publications have not had their
licenses renewed at all. This government control is so pervasive that it encourages
a high level of self censorship among the mainstream media.
The printed media that is most critical of the government are illegal publications,
including newsletters and magazines which lack publishing permits. There are
also several other opposition newsletters which are published and distributed
without government permission (United States Embassy Stockholm 2002).
However the circulation of these products must be fairly limited given that they
cannot be sold openly.
National media sources are also available online, and it is on the internet that
the most independent reporting is to be found. In addition, internet access to
international media sources gives Malaysians access to a wider range of perspec-
tives. As well as these mainstream sources there are also websites supporting a
range of different ideologies and causes. Websites supporting the Palestinian and
Chechen causes are easily accessible and often have links to Malaysian media
sites. This gives Malaysians access to more varied, if one-sided, reporting,
although such sites are largely only available in English or Arabic.
The government had previously promised not to censor the Internet, but Internet
Service Providers (ISPs) still require a licence from the Public Communications
and Multimedia Commission, which can be used as a control mechanism. This
greater freedom to report on the internet has prompted increasing government con-
cern, resulting in increased restrictions on internet reporting. The offices of the
online newspaper Malaysiakini have previously been raided by the police, and the
Government has monitored ‘every article’ it published in order to ensure that its
writings did not ‘upset public order’ (United States Embassy Stockholm 2002).
Harakah Daily’s internet edition has also been restricted to the same twice monthly
frequency of publication as the printed version (Asia Times Online 2000).