MCA today called on the government to reconsider its new social media licensing requirement, warning that the move could lead to abuse.  

Its vice-president Wee Jeck Seng, who is also the Tanjung Piai MP, said the new requirement risks becoming a double-edged sword if misused by ill-intentioned parties. 

“This could potentially impact public freedom of speech. Suppression of constructive online criticism could impede the country’s future progress,” he said in a statement. 

MCA is part of the unity government through its membership in Barisan Nasional. It, however, does not have representatives in government. 

The government decided to introduce a regulatory framework for social media and internet messaging services on August 1, to be implemented by January 2025. 

The Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) warned that failure to obtain the licence after the effective date would constitute an offence. 

The idea behind this licensing requirement was the tackling of cybercrime and cyberbullying. 

All social media and online messaging networks in Malaysia with at least eight million registered users must apply for an Applications Service Provider class license from MCMC. 

Wee said existing laws were sufficient to manage safety issues on social media platforms. 

“The real issue lies in inadequate enforcement, not a lack of regulations. Strengthening enforcement of current laws is more effective than introducing new restrictions to cover up ineffective enforcement,” he said. 

Wee added that the new policy was a form of control over social media platforms.  

“Most countries have not adopted such measures to regulate social media as it could indirectly suppress free speech and constructive criticism of the government. 

“The sudden restrictions could damage Malaysia’s international standing and deter foreign investment due to perceived instability and inconsistent policies, and thus, adversely affect our economy and reputation,” he said. 

He added that instead of increasing restrictions, the government should enhance internet safety education and awareness.  

“An open, free internet is essential for a democratic society. The government must improve transparency and communication, ensuring fair policy-making.  

“Reconsidering this licensing requirement and seeking more effective solutions is crucial for Malaysia’s progress and development,” he said. 

Earlier today, Lawyers for Liberty (LFL) also said the government could tackle issues of cyberbullying and cybercrimes with existing regulations and not require social media platforms to be licensed.

LFL director Zaid Malek expressed concern that the new licensing requirement could be used by the government to silence dissenters and critics. 

“Licensing of social media platforms is unnecessary, high-handed, and poses a serious danger to our democratic right to criticise or question the government. It should be remembered that this government already has a track record of forcing the removal of critical political content by making requests to social media operators,” he said in a statement.

Set up social media council 

Likewise, rights groups Article 19 and Centre for Independent Journalism (CIJ) also expressed their concerns over the new regulatory framework. 

“This development is seen as a direct attempt to exert control over social media platforms, which could have far-reaching implications for freedom of expression, as guaranteed in the federal constitution,” they said in a joint statement.

They added that such regulatory measures could also pose a significant threat to the fundamental democratic values that underpinned the nation’s governance. 

Article 19 and CIJ said they understood the government’s intent to hold social media platforms and messaging applications accountable for online abuse, hate speech, and other problematic content, including scams and fraud, that targeted children and other online users. 

“The important step is to get the social media platforms to enhance its community standards and guidelines to meet international human rights standards, including on data protection, privacy and transparency on use of artificial intelligence (AI). 

“And also to ensure that their content moderation and removal policies and actions are effective and timely, done in transparent and systematic ways, without personal, political or business biases.  

“Social media platforms will have to invest in adequate human and language detection resources to go beyond automated flagging or using AI to detect harmful content,” they said. 

 For this, they added that the government must adopt innovative and alternative means of holding these platforms accountable. 

They also called on the government to establish a social media council that would promote a multi-stakeholder independent regulatory framework, and to set up an independent committee to review the root causes of hate speech and cyberbullying. – July 29, 2024.