Activist and writer Hishamuddin Rais, a prominent figure in the Reformasi movement of the late 1990s, has revealed that his blog, Tukar Tiub, has been “locked”.
The former Internal Security Act (ISA) detainee has since emerged as a vocal critic of Pakatan Harapan chairperson Anwar Ibrahim.
After 17 years of operation, Hishamuddin, 74, said his blog was locked for allegedly violating the bloggers’ community guidelines, a platform owned by Google.
So far, it remains unclear which specific guidelines were breached. However, he has been given the opportunity to request a review.
Questioning “whose work” was behind the ban, Hishamuddin nevertheless sees it as a positive sign.
“If the enemy does not attack, it’s a bad sign - it means what has been done is ineffective, even useless - the enemy doesn’t even bother,” he told Malaysiakini via a text message.
Malaysiakini is seeking further information regarding the restriction and a comment from the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC).
Tukar Tiub features commentaries on various political issues and current affairs.
Not giving up
Hishamuddin made it clear that he would not give up despite what had happened and would continue to voice his opinions on politics.
He noted that this is not the first time his blog has been shut down. Tukar Tiub was also blocked during the administration of former prime minister Najib Abdul Razak.
However, the blog was revived after Najib was defeated in the 14th general election.
“This is not the first time the blog has been blocked - it happened before when Najib was prime minister. However, it ‘came back to life’ after Najib’s downfall,” he added.
As a student leader, Hishamuddin participated in the 1974 demonstration in support of poor farmers in Baling, Kedah.
Anwar, who was also involved, was arrested, while Hishamuddin fled abroad, spending the next two decades in exile.
He was granted political refugee status in Belgium, where he studied French at the Université catholique de Louvain. Later, he pursued art at Brixton College in London and graduated in film and video from the University of Westminster in 1992. - Mkini
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