FOcus On - International Press Institute

sion by going to Thailand illegally, as he
wasted three years there instead of working
and improving his living conditions in
Laos. He says he is lucky that he still has
his farmland and house in Laos.” The
report further quotes the individual as
stating that he is “hap py” to be back in his
“home country”, and that he decided to
return “after re ceiving information that
returning Hmong migrants were welcom -
ed in Laos.”
Amnesty International, meanwhile,
points out that international observers
and NGOs have no access to repatriated
Hmong, and that the whereabouts of
most are not known.
Recommendations
Enact a law allowing the establishment
of private media organizations.
Increase access for foreign journalists.
Decriminalize defamation and libel.
Malaysia by Naomi Hunt
Malaysian media, to quote one dissident
journalist, face laws and res -
trictions that “stifle fundamental liberties.”
National security laws have been
used to detain independent journalists as
well as political opponents. The most
notorious is the Internal Security Act
(ISA) of 1960, which allows that the
home minister order the detention of any
person who is suspected of behaving in a
prejudicial manner toward national
security, the provision of services or
economic life in Malaysia. Furthermore,
arbitrary rules on the issuance of publishing
licences en courage self-censorship.
In April, for example, the Tamil-language
newspaper Makkal Osai (The
People’s Voice) received a letter from the
Home Affairs ministry stating that its
application for a new permit had been
denied. Makkal Osai was known for its
criticism of the Malaysian Indian Con -
gress (MIC), a member of the National
Front coalition that rules the country.
Political use of the publishing leads to
self-censorship. Both the Makkal Osai
and a Mandarin-language newspaper, the
Oriental Daily, toned down critical re -
porting while waiting for permits to be
renewed in the run-up to the March elections.
The Oriental Daily even refrained
from running front-page stories about
the opposition.
In the week of 5 September, three
newspapers were threatened with suspension
for reporting that a leading political
Malaysia in brief
figure called Malaysia’s ethnically Chi -
nese community “squatters.” Sin Chew
Daily reporter Tan Hoon Cheng was ar -
rested a week later under the ISA, and
held for questioning for 16 hours.
Bloggers, meanwhile, are frequent targets
of harassment. On 7 August, for in -
stance, Abdul Rashid Abu Baker, who
runs the blog “penarik beca” (trishaw
ped dler), was arrested and released the
next day on bail. He was not officially
charged with a crime, but was accused of
publishing an “insulting” digitally mani -
pulated photo of a police badge.
In a blatant crackdown on free expression,
the government in August ordered
all 21 Internet service providers in Ma -
lay sia to block the Malaysia Today political
blog, the first time that such action
had been taken against a website in the
country. Raja Petra Raja Kamarudin,
foun ding editor of Malaysia Today, has
been detained on several occasions and
forced to contend with a diverse array of
charges.
In August, defamation charges were
filed against the blogger for three items
posted that month in Malaysia Today.
Raja Petra had implicated the deputy
prime minister, the defence minister and
the defence minister’s wife in the killing
of a Mongolian foreign national. A Ma -
laysian court also ordered Raja Petra to
reveal his sources, as well as the identities
of site visitors who had posted comments
that were considered inflammatory.
Population: 25.3 million
Domestic Overview: Malaysia gained independence from Britain in 1957.
Its constitution guarantees special privileges for ethnic Malays and other
native groups (the “bumiputera,” or sons of the soil), who are all constitutionally
defined as Muslims. Tension between ethnic Malays, Chinese and
Indians persists.
Politics has been dominated by United Malays National Organisation
(UMNO) since 1957; UMNO is, in turn, the dominant party in the governing
Barisan Nasional (National Front) coalition, which has ruled since 1973.
Abdullah Ahmad Badawi has been prime minister since 2003.
Following corruption allegations and concern over abuses of power,
the March 2008 elections in Malaysia were to be a reckoning.
The National Front coalition lost its super-majority in Parliament,
and five of 13 federal state legislatures went to the opposition.
Beyond Borders: Malaysia is not a signatory of the UN Covenant
on Civil and Political Rights. Malaysia is a founding member of ASEAN
and is active in regional cooperation efforts.
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