Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak recently said the government would not suppress cyberspace but instead engage this global change. But how do we square his remarks with the government’s plans to extend the PPPA’s reach online, and their other verbal attacks on internet expression?
PPPA
Regulating the internet: What’s BN afraid of?
CAN the Malaysian government actually be thinking of imposing more controls on our already overly-regulated right to freedom of expression? There’s a myriad of laws available to arrest, charge, fine and jail Malaysians for speaking their minds in ways the government disapproves of. But apparently, these controls are still not enough. On 24 Jan 2011 […]
The impossibility of policing the web
The endless distractions on Facebook are the bane of my working life. As a freelance consultant, I need discipline and a strict schedule to meet tight deadlines. But then a friend from university announces his baby is having problems feeding, and so I stop my work to suggest strategies for feeding babies. Or to respond […]
Lift ban on cartoons, repeal PPPA
THE Centre for Independent Journalism (CIJ) Malaysia and the Writers Alliance for Media Independence (Wami) condemn the Home Ministry’s banning of 1Funny Malaysia, Perak Darul Kartun and Isu Dalam Kartun. These cartoon compilations are by Zulkifli Anwar Ulhaque, better known as Zunar. According to online daily Malaysiakini, whose subsidiary Kinibooks is the publisher of 1Funny […]
Will a media council work?
IN the interest of media freedom, Umno Youth chief Khairy Jamaluddin recently stepped up to the plate in Parliament by calling for the abolishment of the Printing Presses and Publications Act (PPPA). Khairy advocated the setting up of a national media council and for the media to be allowed to self-regulate without government interference. The […]
Regaining our Malaysian voice
(Pic by Yamamoto Ortiz / sxc.hu) MY New Year wish for all Malaysians is that we will regain our voice. We face an uncertain 2010. But if we are to become politically stable and economically secure, it is now, more than ever, that we need to be able to be openly critical of outdated policies […]
Problematic licensing laws hamper freedom of expression
THE Centre for Independent Journalism (CIJ) and Writers Alliance for Media Independence (Wami) are concerned about the confiscation of a cartoon magazine on current issues edited by prominent cartoonist Zunar. The confiscation smacks of harassment and censorship of discussion of current issues. On 25 Aug, officials from the Control of Publication Department of the Ministry […]
Kosmo!‘s offence
THE media are at it again. Sensationalising the news, reporting inaccurately and unfairly, and worst of all, having no regard for the personal damage a report may have on a party. The latest of irresponsible and unethical reporting was in Kosmo!‘s 27 July 2009 edition that front-paged celebrated filmmaker Yasmin Ahmad who passed away from […]
AI highlights racial discrimination in M’sia
PETALING JAYA, 28 May 2009: For the first time in its annual human rights report for Malaysia, Amnesty International (AI) has highlighted racial discrimination as one of several human rights violations in the country. The 2009 report said that racial discrimination was institutionalised in Malaysia, particularly in government-backed affirmative action policies for bumiputeras such as […]
PPPA bad for business
THE recent seizures of Suara Keadilan and Harakah have once again highlighted inherent difficulties posed by the Printing and Publications Act (PPPA) and its impact on our publishing industry. One aspect that has fallen by the wayside in the rush to speculate on the seemingly arbitrary confiscation — if they were part of a routine […]
