Ban on election gatherings unhealthy for democracy, says analyst

 

A political analyst has dismissed the Health Ministry's move to ban all public gatherings in connection with the forthcoming Malacca state election, citing damaging impacts on democracy.

Universiti Malaya's Awang Azman Awang Pawi said the ban, which would put an end to most forms of physical or face-to-face campaigning, has gone against the true spirit of democracy and an election.

"Covid-19 should not be used as an excuse to restrict face-to-face campaigns because we are now in Phase 4 of the National Recovery Plan and moving into the endemic stage.

"The Election Commission should view the ban seriously and ensure it would not be enforced in totality because it is seen as being unhealthy for democracy,"  Awang Azman (above) said.

In announcing the ban, Health Minister Khairy Jamaluddin said it was part of attempts to prevent another Covid-19 infection spike, based on data that linked recent Covid-19 cases to social gatherings that were held as state borders reopened.

Prior to Khairy's announcement, the Malaysian Medical Association (MMA) called on the EC to ban all forms of physical campaigning.

However, Awang Azman argued that such restrictions would go against the spirit of an election campaign intended to allow engagement between voters and electoral candidates.

Furthermore, he said, voters are less likely to get to know their prospective elected representatives with the restrictions on direct communications usually done in gatherings.

"By right, before any decision is made, it should involve public consultation or a town hall session for feedback.

"In fact, all contesting parties should have been consulted and the Election Commission must obtain a consensus before making a decision that involves the erosion of voters' democratic rights," he stressed.

Ahead of nomination day on Nov 8, Awang Azman warned of possible protests against the ban, ultimately risking a lower voter turnout come polling day on Nov 20.

The Coalition for Free and Fair Elections (Bersih 2.0) previously labelled the ban as a "suppression of democracy".

Bersih pointed out how the ban would grossly disadvantage political parties that are not part of the ruling government due to bias by the state media. - Mkini