Freedom of expression - now you see it, now you don't

Last week, journalists believed that they had good reasons to celebrate but in the end, they turned to be fallacies.

On Thursday, a bill to abolish the Anti-Fake News Act (AFNA) was tabled in Parliament.

Then came even (supposedly) better news - the High Court dismissed former prime minister Najib Abdul Razak’s bid to extend the interim gag order preventing the public and the media from discussing the criminal charges that have been brought against him.

Journalists, lawyers, civil service advocates, politicians and many other professionals were vociferous in our opposition to the AFNA when it was first mooted.

The protagonists of this law used their might in both the Houses – Dewan Rakyat and Dewan Negara – to shuffle it down our throats.

The mainstream media were numbed into silence and refused to take a stand – perhaps avoiding the risk of annoying their political masters. Even reporting how the law was pushed through Parliament was taboo.

Some news organisations even barred their journalists from joining the vocal and raucous protests and demands which contended that such a law restricts freedom of expression.

Today, newspapers and TV stations are enjoying something that they yearned for but were afraid to voice out. There is no reason to thump our chests and jeer or leer at them for their silence on an unacceptable and unpalatable piece of legislation.

We should be thankful it was effective for less than six months. The gag order which Najib obtained was even shorter – 36 days to be exact.

On July 4, the High Court allowed Najib's application for an interim gag order on the media from discussing the merits of the criminal breach of trust and abuse of power charges brought against him.

The interim gag order expired last Friday and the application to extend the interim directive was heard before High Court judge Mohd Nazlan Mohd Ghazali.

Justice Mohd Nazlan held that Najib's application to extend the interim gag order was unsustainable. Was it really a reason to celebrate?

MCMC exercise smacks of politics

However, the much-baulked about freedom lasted just a few hours. Also on last Friday night, it was reported that the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) had issued guidelines for the broadcast industry which, among others, discouraged the use of disparaging references to political figures and political parties.

These guidelines were formulated during a workshop attended by Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka, Film Censorship Board, Communication and Multimedia Content Forum (CMCF) and Commercial Radio Malaysia (CRM) on Oct 3 last year and published on July 3.

Malaysiakini understands that these are phrases that have been used to describeprominent Pakatan Harapan and BN figures. Even Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamed’s infamous “dedak” (animal feed) remark cannot be used.

Were these guidelines promulgated to prevent Mahathir from using the phrase which most Malaysians understood as “pay-outs” from the then ruling party?

This whole MCMC exercise smacks of politics. Why was this not implemented immediately? Why did it take seven months? Was it to allow certain political parties a free run to use “kafir”, (infidel) and “murtad” (apostate) on those who don’t subscribe to their policies in the run-up to the 14th general election?

Was the seven-month delay in implementation to allow politicians to affix labels on their opponents? Just Google these phrases and you can read the number of times they were used in the lead-up to the GE14.

Why were TV stations not pulled up when telecasting ceramah where such words were used?

I am all for regulations and every right-thinking Malaysian will support me in the call for a total prohibition of punitive sanctions against those who use expletives, curse words and profanities.

But if I can’t label a TV station or a channel as “TV tiga suku” (in a TV interview ) for telecasting “half-past-six” (without using expletives) programmes or having an announcer who can’t pronounce certain names, then it impedes my freedom of expression.

Exposing Mara's wrongdoings a sensitive issue?

If the MCMC whammy can be written off as a blooper, the same cannot be said of the second whammy from Mahathir (photo). He reminded cabinet ministers to be sensitive to issuing statements on Majlis Amanah Rakyat (Mara).

But before I comment, let me declare my interests. An Australian journalist, Nick Mckenzie, and I spent months tracing the flow of funds from a web of offshore companies to the bank accounts of certain Mara officials in less-than-honest property deals.

I want to see all, if not some of the perpetrators, in jail for this heinous and odious crime of stealing public money.

Last Friday night Bernama quoted the prime minister as saying many statements had been hurled on Mara, which influenced the views of the people in general. “It has become a sensitive issue which needs to be given attention by Bersatu and Pakatan Harapan," Mahathir said.

While it is understandable that Harapan should be sensitive to the views of the people, the theft of money from Mara’s funds and the excesses of some of its officials cannot be dismissed summarily.

If ministers can’t comment on the pillage, pilfering and plundering of funds belonging to Mara and its affiliates, who else will keep the public informed?

The prime minister will agree with me that exposing such illegal activities is NOT a sensitive issue.

Ministers should be encouraged to make public the wrongdoings in areas under their purview as in the case of the disappearance and siphoning of money from the Treasury.

Every Malaysian (including the sensitive people) has the right to know the extent the country’s money meant for affirmative policies have been hijacked by greedy individuals who were supposed to act as trustees of public funds.

If these issues cannot be discussed and debated and subsequently swept under the carpet by such diktats, I’m sorry for the New Malaysia and the newly-found freedom of expression.

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R NADESWARAN has campaigned for freedom of expression and written extensively on the abuses in Mara which runs into millions of ringgit. Comments: citizen.nades22@gmail.com -Mkini