Commentary by Mustafa K. Anuar

THE challenges Covid-19 pandemic poses have brought about various reactions from ordinary Malaysians.

In particular, economic hardships and health safety conjure up images of people harbouring anxiety, despair, sadness, frustration, anger and determination. And out of these sentiments, there emerge creative impulses, which are often laced with humour, among some people.

For certain people, their creative responses to these challenges are their way of coping with their frustrations, anger and despair.

The way the pandemic is being handled by the government, particularly the implementation of the movement control order’s (MCO) standard operating procedures (SOP) and the declaration of emergency, has become fodder for those dripping with creative juices.

For instance, the so-called reinforced restrictions imposed from tomorrow under MCO 3.0 stipulate, among other things, that 80% of the civil service workforce work from home while 40% of the private-sector personnel are required to do the same.

It is here that the creative minds among the social media users cheekily insisted that 100% of our lawmakers are expected to work from home, indicating an unhappiness with the suspension of our parliament under the state of emergency since the beginning of the year.

Another example of such criticisms on social media is the one that makes a comparison between factory workers and parliamentarians. It notes that the former go to work even though not all have been vaccinated while the latter stay at home, although they all have been vaccinated.

The SOP that is perceived to be applied differently to different classes of people, that is, the common people versus the famous and the influential (kluster kayangan), has set tongues wagging, particularly among the former.

To be sure, Malaysians have been constantly reminded and warned by the authorities through televised announcements and SMS to strictly adhere to the SOP in the purported effort to break the chain of viral infections.

And so, when an individual, particularly of high profile, breaches the SOP, he or she becomes an object of derision, especially if the person eventually manages to get off lightly.  

There had been such cases before that kept the creative minds going into overdrive with their wry sense of humour as a way of venting their frustration and even anger against what they perceive to be an unjust situation or double standards. You might call it a weapon of the weak, to borrow a term coined by anthropologist James C. Scott, who studied the daily forms of peasant resistance, such as foot-dragging, evasion and feigned ignorance. 

However, the recent incident involving hijab celebrity Noor Neelofa Mohd Noor and her husband Muhammad Haris Mohd Ismail deserves special mention as it not only attracted the attention of the creative minds but also could serve as a barometer of how much humour Malaysians could handle and tolerate.

It was reported that the couple had violated the interstate travel ban when they crossed the line between Selangor and Negri Sembilan to visit a carpet shop in Nilai 3.

As it turned out, the couple were charged with not scanning the MySejahtera code at the shop while Muhammad Haris was also charged with not wearing a mask in a public place. However, both were let off the hook as regards their interstate travel.

Social media users predictably sprang to action to lampoon the couple and the perceived differential treatment.

A cartoon made its rounds on social media, showing a group of demonstrators, presumably Negri Sembilan folk, who protested against what was seen as Selangor’s “annexation” of Nilai 3 from Negri Sembilan. In front of them stood a woman in niqab, a garment covering the face, supposedly representing Neelofa.

This sketch encapsulates the frustration, if not anger, of those who resented what was perceived as double standards in the enforcement of the SOP. The lampoon here revolves around Nilai 3 that is now made out to be part of Selangor so that Neelofa and husband, who hail from Selangor, need not be accused of having committed interstate travel violation.

Another item that parodied the Neelofa issue and went viral is what appears to be a concocted Wikipedia entry about Nilai 3 Wholesale Centre, where the controversial couple went. In it, the reader is told that Nilai 3 is one of the towns located in Negri Sembilan, but its ownership has now been transferred to Selangor by an artiste who presumably has the capacity to do so, given that she comes from the kayangan (heavenly) cluster.

The menteris besar of Negri Sembilan and Selangor were reportedly amused and consequently traded jokes over this matter.

But not everyone is rolling on the floor laughing. There are people who have taken the parody too seriously to the extent that there is a video clip, for instance, that presents a man standing outside his car, alerting the viewers in his Negri Sembilan lingo that Nilai 3 is indeed part of the Minangkabau-majority state.

Someone even posted on social media a screen grab of his query to the Department of Survey and Mapping Malaysia, asking whether Nilai 3 is really located in Selangor, to which the department assured him that it is still part of neighbouring Negri Sembilan.

As a result, police have opened an investigation paper into the case of a Facebook account owner who was suspected of spreading fake news that “could cause public confusion and panic” regarding the claims that Nilai 3 is now located in Selangor.

The owner is being investigated under Section 505 of the Penal Code and Section 233 of the Communications and Multimedia Act 1998.

Section 505(b) provides up to two years’ imprisonment or a fine, or both, for anyone who makes a statement that can cause fear or alarm to the public.

Section 233 concerns the misuse of network facilities and provides a punishment of up to a year in prison or a fine of up to RM50,000, or both.

As intimated above, parody is generally meant to give people a laugh and at the same time, serves as a safety valve for people to vent their frustrations and anger, especially in a social context where freedom of expression is not well appreciated by the authorities as well as certain quarters in society.

In the Neelofa issue, the sarcasm is meant to address the problem of double standards in implementing the SOP.

It is unfortunate that some people cannot distinguish between wry satire and reality, and that such humour is lost on them. This makes it somewhat risky to write satire in Malaysia for there are people who cannot distinguish between the two. – May 24, 2021.