Friday February 16 Demonising Malaysiakini Steven Gan 1:13pm, Fri: Those who watch TV1 news would notice by now that there is a special slot recently on malaysiakini every evening. These reports would make Nazi propaganda master Joseph Goebbles proud. They were laced with quotes taken out of context, fabrications and downright lies. Take, for example, yesterday’s report. It said I wrote a false story on the deaths of 59 detainees in the Semenyih immigrants camp near Kajang, Selangor. Instead, said the report, there were only eight deaths including that of a police officer. Alas, TV1 was talking about two different events. True, in 1998, there was a riot in Semenyih as the authorities moved to deport thousands of Indonesians. The violence began when the police launched a simultaneous operation to round up detainees from Indonesia's troubled province of Aceh in four camps for repatriation. By the time calm was restored, nine people - eight Indonesians and one police officer - were dead, and dozens injured. I was then working for the English-language newspaper The Nation in Bangkok, and did not cover the violent deportations. The story that I did cover, however, was in 1995 when I was working for The Sun. Together with two colleagues - Selvi Gopal and Umah Papachan - we unearthed the deaths of 59 detainees in Semenyih. They died of beri-beri - a symptom of malnutrition - and typhoid, diseases which are easily preventable. We pointed out that this was a case of criminal neglect on the part of the police who ran the camp. The story was spiked by The Sun editors hours before it went to print. When it appeared that the paper was not going to run the story, the team decided to hand the information over to Tenaganita, an NGO which supports migrant workers. It wasn't until Tenaganita exposed the deaths at a press conference - and these deaths were confirmed by the government - that the newspaper had the courage to run the story, but only after four revisions. Deaths confirmed Soon after Tenaganita's revelations, then deputy home minister Megat Junid Megat Ayob confirmed there had been 42 deaths in Semenyih. At least 10 died of beri-beri, a nutritional deficiency disease resulting from lack of vitamin B1. Beri-beri, said the Malaysia Medical Association, is an easily treatable disease and unheard of in the country since World War II. Later, Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad, in an answer to a question in Parliament, said that 98 detainees had died at immigration depots, of which 43 were in Semenyih. The government reacted swiftly by setting up a semi-independent board to investigate the conditions in the camps and ordered the Health Ministry to administer vitamin B1 pills to detainees to curb beri-beri. But that was not the end of the story. Two months after the exposure, the whistle-blower, Tenaganita director Irene Fernandez, was subsequently arrested for spreading "false news" under the Printing Presses and Publications Act - a law originally used to muzzle the press. The Act stipulates that any publication which have been found to have "maliciously published any false news, the printer, publisher, editor and the writer shall be guilty of an offence". Those who wrote the story were also interrogated by the police for three days. Why PPPA? That was because Fernandez sent, yes, a memorandum to key ministers to alert them of widespread abuse, torture, denial of proper medical care, lack of food and water, widespread disease, and deaths in the detention camps. Fernandez's six-page document was by no stretch of the imagination considered a publication. But that did not deter the authorities from pursuing the case against her, and she is currently facing trial. If found guilty, she could be sentenced to up to three years’ imprisonment. Fernandez went to trial in 1996 and hers became the longest criminal trial in Malaysian legal history. Five years on, there is still no end in sight. ‘Don’t be ashamed’ At the Malaysian Press Institute’s Journalism Awards 1996, Mahathir told the 700 journalists who attended the gala event to behave themselves. He said Malaysians should not be unduly ashamed of laws which curtail their freedom of expression. "Are we ashamed that there is no freedom of the press in this country?" he asked. "Do we, forever, have to apologise to the rest of the world for our laws? Could it be, perhaps, that we are right and they are wrong?" Later that night, he presented a number of awards to journalists picked by a panel of veteran journalists for their outstanding news reports. One of the winners was "Shattered Dreams" - the report about the deaths of immigrants in the detention camps, a story originally considered unfit for publication. But despite the irony of the award, Malaysian journalists have yet to prove Mahathir wrong. Especially given the sloppy journalism, no, invidious propaganda, one sees on national TVs and certain mainstream media in recent weeks.

From:  DAP MALAYSIA <dap.malaysia@p...> Date:  Mon Mar 5, 2001 3:13pm Subject:  [BUNGARAYA] Ezam, Mahathir, Malaysiakini and Media Council ------------------------------------------------------------------------- This is the list for the Democratic Action Party of Malaysia. To subscribe, send "subscribe" in email body to <bungaraya-request@l...> ------------------------------------------------------------------------- Media Statement by DAP National Chairman Lim Kit Siang in Petaling Jaya on Monday, 5th March  2001: DAP call for urgent establishment of an independent high-powered Media Council to promote free and  responsible press with powers to expose all irresponsible foreign and local reporting ====================================================== In his television interview with the Phoenix Chinese channel of Astro during his recent visit to China, which were telecast yesterday, the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Dr. Mahathir Mohamad said  one of the country's greatest threats is the foreign media which is seeking to sabotage Malaysia's development. But to Malaysians who want to see the restoration of justice, freedom, democracy and good governance and the development of a peaceful, democratic, prosperous and united Malaysia,  one of the greatest obstacles they face is a subservient and irresponsible local media. In the past few days, I had repeatedly refused to be interviewed by the government television channels, which suddenly took a great interest in me, with TV2 even sending a camera crew to Bayan Lepas in Penang yesterday where the DAP was forming two new branches. However, I still refused to be interviewed by TV2 as the government or government-controlled media, both electronic and printed, are not dedicated to responsible journalism but only want to distort, vilify and denigrate the Barisan Alternative, totally bereft of the most elementary canons of journalistic ethics. The latest example of the  irresponsible Malaysian mainstream media  is the orchestrated attack on Keadilan Youth chief, Ezam Mohd Noor,  for wanting to topple the elected government through massive street demonstrations every day, based on a front-page report in the UMNO-run  Mingguan Malaysia which has lost all  credibility and integrity as far as its political journalism is concerned. It is not surprising that Mahathir has himself got into the act, which is probably one of the latest creations of the UMNO Dirty Tricks Department, but what is shocking is  that the Deputy Inspector-General of Police Datuk Mohamad Jamil Johari should be dragged into the fiasco by announcing that the police itself will lodge a police report to enable  the police to initiate investigations that Keadilan plans to hold street demonstrations to topple the government. What happens if investigations reveal that the allegations are false? Can the police itself be prosecuted for lodging a false report? There is no justification for the mainstream media to go overboard with such "a song and dance" on the subject as Ezam had denied the Mingguan Malaysia report, which is acknowledged by today's  Star.  I spoke  to Ezam by phone just now and he again categorically denied that he had said anything about toppling the elected government through  demonstrations although he had spoken of organising demonstrations to allow the people the opportunity to express their  many grievances against the Barisan Nasional government. Another recent example of the irresponsible mainstream media is the dishonest manner in which they mounted an attack on Malaysia's only online newspaper, Malaysiakini - enlisting this time not only Mahathir but even the Deputy Prime Minister and Home Minister, Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi in the offensive. DAP calls for the urgent establishment of an independent high-powered Media Council to promote free and  responsible press with powers to expose all instances of irresponsible foreign and local reporting. Mahathir and the government can lodge complaints against all instances of unfair reporting by the foreign media, while the Barisan Alternative and Malaysians in general should be able to lodge complaints against all instances of unfair reporting by the mainstream local media - and the Media Council should comprise independent-minded, credible and reputable Malaysians who are entrusted and empowered to expose all instances of irresponsible foreign and local reporting. -  Lim Kit Siang -

Monday March 5 Call for a media council to curb irresponsible reporting Zakiah Koya 7:24pm, Mon: There is an urgency for an independent media council to promote free and responsible press to expose all irresponsible foreign and local reporting and stop unwarranted allegations against the opposition. DAP national chairman Lim Kit Siang said that although Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad had blamed the foreign media for being one of the country’s greatest threats sabotaging Malaysia’s development, the greatest obstacle faced by Malaysians who want to see the restoration of justice, freedom, democracy and good governance is “a subservient and irresponsible local media”. Lim, who is a former journalist, also explained his refusal to be interviewed by government and government-controlled television channels despite being repeatedly asked by them. “I refused to be interviewed by TV2 as the government or government-controlled media - both electronic and printed - are not dedicated to responsible journalism but only want to distort, vilify and denigrate Barisan Alternatif,” he said. According to him, these media organisations are totally bereft of the most elementary canons of journalistic ethics. Last Saturday, Bar Council president Sulaiman Abdullah also called for the establishment of a National Press Council to curb the trend of increasingly unreasonable million-ringgit defamation law suits in the last few years. Orchestrated attack Lim pointed out that the latest example of the “irresponsible Malaysian mainstream media” is the attack on Keadilan Youth chief Mohd Ezam Mohd Noor. “The orchestrated attack on Ezam for allegedly wanting to topple the elected government through massive street demonstrations every day is based on the front page report in the Umno-run Mingguan Malaysia, which has lost all credibility and integrity as far as its political journalism is concerned,” said Lim. Lim also said that there is no justification for the mainstream media to go overboard with such “a song and dance” on the subject as Ezam had denied the Mingguan Malaysia report. “I spoke to Ezam on the phone and he again categorically denied that he had said anything about toppling the government through demonstrations although he had spoken of organising demonstrations to allow the people the opportunity to express their many grievances against the Barisan Nasional government,” said Lim. Yesterday, Mingguan Malaysia reported that Ezam had said he would organise daily street demonstrations until the government is overthrown. Lim also said it is also shocking to know that Deputy Inspector General of Police Datuk Mohamad Jamil Johari had announced the police themselves will lodge a police report to enable them to initiate investigations on Ezam. “What happens if investigations reveal that the allegations are false? Can the police be prosecuted for lodging a false report?” asked Lim. This afternoon Umno Youth made a police report against Ezam and at about 2pm, six police officers raided the Keadilan Youth chief’s house in Kelana Jaya, Selangor. Dishonest action Lim further said that another recent example of the irresponsible mainstream media is the dishonest manner in which they mounted an attack on web-based daily malaysiakini. “This time, it (mainstream media) not only enlists (Prime Minister Dr) Mahathir (Mohamad), but even the Deputy Prime Minister and Home Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi in the offensive,” he said. Abdullah was quoted by the media yesterday as saying that the government’s allegation that malaysiakini was funded by financial speculator George Soros has been proven true following the latest revelation by the daily’s former news editor. He added that the government is disappointed at malaysiakini’s denial of the link. Yesterday, Mahathir said that all loyal Malaysians would not support malaysiakini, insinuating that the news website journalists are traitors. With the formation of the media council, Lim said that Mahathir and the government can lodge complaints against unfair reporting by the foreign media, while Barisan Alternatif and Malaysians in general should be able to lodge complaints against unfair reporting by the mainstream local media. “The media council should comprise independent-minded, credible and reputable Malaysians who are entrusted and empowered to expose all instances of irresponsible foreign and local reporting,” said Lim. Vile attempts Meanwhile, Keadilan vice-president Dr Chandra Muzaffar said that he regrets very much “the vile attempt by Mahathir to depict Keadilan as a party bent on overthrowing the government through violence”. “As a party that upholds democratic values, we abhor the use of violence to achieve political change. What we continue to assert is the democratic right of the people to assemble peacefully to express their feelings about issues of public concern,” said Chandra. Chandra also said that peaceful gatherings organised by Keadilan in the past few weeks in Kuala Lumpur, Kulim and Kubang Pasu (in Kedah) have often been disrupted by harsh and often cruel police action. “Right from the outset, Keadilan’s agenda was much larger than (jailed former deputy prime minister) Anwar Ibrahim. Nonetheless, because of the injustice done to him, Anwar has become an important symbol in the people’s quest for justice,” he added. “The danger to the independence and sovereignty of the nation comes from a corrupt, greedy elite that monopolises the wealth of the nation and places its own interests above that of the people. It is this unpatriotic elite that has betrayed the nation.” Chandra said that Mahathir is trying to “pull wool over the people’s eyes by painting Keadilan as unpatriotic, undemocratic and prone to violence”. “But the people cannot be deceived anymore,” he said. Mahathir told reporters yesterday that Keadilan is only keen to fight for Anwar’s freedom and to ferment violence through demonstrations.

FAC News 9 March 2001 - 13.00 Has the crackdown on REFORMASI Websites begun? Malaysia has a population of around 22 to 23 million people. There are five Internet Service Providers (ISPs) in the country with about 1.3 million Internet users. This brings the total number of Internet users to only about 5% of the population. This is very small compared to countries like the US where the numbers of Internet users are about 30% of the population. But this is still way above neighbouring countries like Thailand, Indonesia and the Philippines where cellphone SMS messages are the normal means of spreading “underground” information. The Internet first made its debut in Malaysia in 1996. The first ISP was Jaring, a government-owned organisation that still remains the market leader. Then came TMNet, which is owned by Telekoms Malaysia, another government-owned telecommunication company. TMNet has almost the same number of users as Jaring. Control over the Internet has been relatively relaxed. However, due to the large number of opposition and human rights Websites, the government is constantly monitoring the Internet. UMNO, the dominant partner in the ruling coalition, has even set up a special unit to monitor all Internet postings and make police reports against what they may perceive as slanderous, libelous, or seditious in nature. Of course, once a police report has been made, the police will have to immediately act on it with zeal. It makes one wonder why the same promptness and zealousness cannot be duplicated in the 100 or so police reports the opposition has so far made against government ministers and their cronies. On 26 January 2000, Leo Moggie, the Minister of Communications and Multimedia, said, "The government has no intention to monitor the Net but it will act against all those who do not respect the law." On 12 December 2000, the Deputy Prime Minister cum Minister of Home Affairs, who has jurisdiction over the police, said that several Internet users accused of having "insulted" the Koran would be brought to book. In early December 2000, the government threatened to close down Harakah, the Malaysian Islamic Party (PAS) bimonthly publication, because it did not respect the terms of its license by publishing more than two issues per month. The government was referring to the Harakah Online publication, which is updated daily, and which is regarded as an “extension” of the fortnightly publication. UMNO also condemned the many other pro-REFORMASI Websites, which at last count totaled about 50 or so.   Recently, the government asked Malaysiakini, the most popular local independent Online daily, to "respecter ethical rules and not publish incorrect information or false accusations".  Journalists working for Malaysiakini cannot obtain press accreditation, even though the site has more than 100,000 readers per day. In addition, members of its editorial staff have sometimes been refused access to official events and press conferences. Last year, the Telecommunications Minister said that the government is preparing an Internet law to better control its content and, late last year, a government committee was set up to monitor the opposition media network – both print and cyber. Have we begun to see a crackdown on “anti-government” Websites? First it was Malaysiakini on charges of receiving money from George Soros. Now it’s the International Free Anwar Campaign on charges of sedition. And will we see more to come? I suppose the bigger question would be, where to now for the Multi-Media Super Corridor or MSC and its promise of no government control or restrictions? It would be interesting to see whether the fate of these persecuted Websites would in turn seal the fate of the MSC? Over to you Mahathir and your dreams of leading the world in IT for dreams do, sometimes, turn into nightmares.

BARE KNUCKLES Mediated benevolence Mustafa K. Anuar Nov 26: On Nov 13, the pro-establishment New Straits Times (NST) reproduced from its archives an old political cartoon (p. 4) in which consummate cartoonist Lat deftly depicts the antics of endearing politicians during election campaigns. Mahathir Mohamad is sketched as a campaigning politician trying to help out a housewife in her daily household chores of pounding chili and putting a baby to sleep. Yes, all politicians tend to show -- or feign -- what caring human beings they can be in their attempt to put up an affable image and win the election. But as far as the mainstream Malaysian media go, Barisan Nasional politicians appear more caring and concerned than Barisan Alternatif politicians. This impression is achieved by simply giving more than ample coverage to BN politicians' visiting the electorate, carrying babies, holding the hands of elderly people, etc. That is why, for example, we are able to see incumbent Lembah Pantai MP Shahrizat Abdul Jalil attentively talking to people in her constituency or T. Sita Vellasamy, a widow, thanking MCA's Dr Ting Chew Peh for having helped her get a low-cost house and jobs for her children. As if not to be outdone, former Semangat 46 president Razaleigh Hamzah was also portrayed as the people's man in the Nov 23 NST. A kicker ran across the page: "Ku Li wins hearts by visiting in rain, making everyone feel important". Certain BA politicians have also been covered in this light by the mainstream media, but these occasions can be counted on one's fingers. In other words, the coverage of political hustings is highly in favour of BN politicians. The caring image of BN politicians is created by a concerted effort by both the party and the mainstream media to narrow any visible ideological and political gap between the BN and the people. Hence, the political, economic, social and cultural interests of the people are made to appear as one with those of the BN. "We" should be one big, happy family, this nation of ours, and we are expected to acknowledge that "father knows best" by voting the BN and its father-knows-best philosophy to power again in this general election. As intimated above, the projected image in the media of the BN is of a party that conscientiously defends and promotes the rights and interests of ordinary citizens. That is why Malaysians, as exemplified by a group of Malaysian Sikh organisations in a one-page advertisement in the Nov 23 NST, are supposed to declare their utmost gratefulness: "we don't bite the hand that feeds us". The same goes with the local television stations. The feel-good ntv7, for example, invariably carries a video clip at the end of its 8.00pm news bulletin, billed "Impian Menjadi Nyata" (Dreams Turned Reality), in which two old Malay men, as if reading from a badly-written script, sing praises of the BN government for having helped their sons be trained as medical doctors. And as if to warn us all, one of the ugliest media advertisements in our political history screams: "Don't gamble our future". This is, of course, not to deny the fact that Malaysia has progressed in many ways under the BN government, progress that has been enjoyed by many Malaysians. But it is also a fact that, as mentioned earlier, under the BN our country has also faced a range of problems -- political, economic, social and cultural -- which unfortunately were conveniently swept under the carpet by the mainstream media. As in the case of most mainstream newspapers, the electronic media are also generally predictable in their positive portrayal of the BN while consciously neglecting and belittling the BA. Indeed, Malaysian television stations' obscenely biased coverage of the political campaigns transforms the TV set in the sitting room into a proverbial idiot box! The excessive display of the BN benevolence is not only unfair to the opposition, but also acutely improper, especially once the BN government has changed its status to that of a caretaker government. Once Parliament is dissolved, a caretaker government is entrusted to perform only the rudimentary roles of the state. It has no moral authority to make promises, particularly regarding development projects, during the election campaign period. Thus, one could only surmise that government machinery has been abused when the caretaker BN government announced, for instance, higher pensions for 380,000 Malaysian pensioners (The Star, Nov 24). And, not to forget farmers, caretaker Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad recently launched a Bernas (Padiberas Nasional Berhad) education fund for their children (NST, Nov 22). But, unsurprisingly, not a whimper has been heard from the Election Commission regarding the ethics, or lack of them, of the caretaker government in this regard, nor did the local media feel duty-bound to investigate.. One may argue that such crude unfairness is really nothing new or out of the ordinary in Malaysian mainstream media. The mainstream media have always had the inclination to foreground and promote BN politicians and policies, and marginalise the Opposition and other dissenting voices. But these media's unfair and distasteful treatment gets even more pronounced and ugly especially during periods of political crisis and during general elections. Judging by their performance lately, the mainstream media are expected to be at their lowest ebb in this year's general election. A visitor from the outer space may well be excused if s/he, after having a painful encounter with Malaysia's mainstream press and electronic media, comes to the conclusion that this century's Greatest Brain Robbery had actually occurred in the mainstream mass media. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Dr MUSTAFA K. ANUAR teaches Communication Studies at the Universiti Sains Malaysia, Penang. In his spare time, he reads back issues of Beano and a few of Malaysia's mainstream newspapers.