PRINT and broadcast media in Malaysia are enjoying greater freedom under Pakatan Harapan compared with the previous administration, said the 2018 US embassy’s report on human rights practices.

The report noted that the PH administration maintained its ability to censor the media but did not use that power as frequently as Barisan Nasional.

PH won the May 9 general election last year, removing the BN coalition which ruled Malaysia for more than six decades.

The US report observed that apart from controlling news content by banning or restricting publications believed to threaten public order, morality, or national security, BN also prosecuted journalists for “malicious news” but took little to no action against those who abused journalists.

A requirement for printers and publishers to obtain a government permit to own a printing press, coupled with broadcast guidelines, made print and broadcast media highly biased and restricted, it said.

“Such policies, together with anti-defamation laws, inhibited independent or investigative journalism and resulted in extensive self-censorship in the print and broadcast media,” it said.

The report also cited how the federal internet regulator Malaysian Communication and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) reportedly ordered internet service providers to block access to independent media outlets running unofficial election results on the night of the May 9 polling day.

It cited the Home Ministry’s list of 1,653 banned publications as of March 2017 and its decision to ban six books in April last year after their content was deemed detrimental to public order, morality, or public interest, including texts that contained “elements promoting liberalism that can cause confusion among some readers”.

Watching the internet

BN also blocked access to several online portals, such as the critical whistle-blower site Sarawak Report, which ran exposes on the 1Malaysia Development Bhd (1MDB) scandal. But after PH took over, the portals were unblocked.

However, all was not rosy on the internet under PH, which continues to restrict freedom to combat dissenting political views and offensive messages that could harm Malaysia’s harmony.

“The government warned internet users to avoid offensive or indecent content and sensitive matters, such as religion and race, and aggressively pursued charges against those criticising Islam, the country’s royalty, or its political leaders,” said the report.

Sedition and criminal defamation laws have led to self-censorship by local internet content sources, including bloggers, news providers, and civil society activists, it said.

According to the International Telecommunication Union, about 80% of the population has access to the internet in 2017.

Academic and cultural censorship

There were also some restrictions on academic freedom, namely the expression of “unapproved political views”.

“Self-censorship took place among academics at private institutions as well, spurred by fear the government might revoke the licences of their institutions,” said the report, which noted that self-censorship was most practiced by academics from public universities.

The US report also noted how the government regularly censored films, editing out profanity, kissing, sex, nudity, and certain political and religious content.

The censorship board also regularly banned movies with lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender (LGBT) themes.

“The Film Censorship Board banned a controversial Hindi film that featured a relationship between a Hindu queen and a Muslim ruler in medieval India,” it said.

“The film censorship board also banned Those Long Haired Nights, a Philippine film about transgender prostitutes.”

The report also said screenings of films from Israel or those in Hebrew or Yiddish were disallowed.

Malaysia has no diplomatic ties with Israel to protest its treatment of Palestine. – March 20, 2019.