Mobile phones have become the latest battleground in forthcoming general election, with IT-savvy political parties sending tens of thousands of short messages daily to woo voters ahead of March 21 polling.

Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi's Barisan Nasional coalition and its key rival the hardline Islamic party PAS are harnessing the power of the Short Messaging System (SMS) to reach out especially to urban professionals, making this election the most technology-driven ever.

From the 37th floor of the Umno building in the heart of the capital, members of the party's youth wings hunched behind computers are sending out some 50,000 SMS daily to remind Malaysians why Abdullah should be supported. Umno heads the coalition.

"Vote for the PM who says work with me and we will work for you," read a note that popped up on one cell phone here via SMS.

"This election is not an experiment. Don't put your future at stake," said another.

Umno Youth official Abdul Rauf said: "It's a new and efficient tool for us to distribute our message in this high-tech world. We also send SMS to boost the spirit of our workers on the ground."

New battle field

PAS, which controls two of Malaysia's 13 states and wants to turn Malaysia into a theocratic state with Taliban-style syariah laws complete with amputation and stoning to death, has also jumped on the SMS bandwagon, urging the people to "vote for a new Malaysia."

"We have to keep up with the current trend. We have been shut out of the mainstream media so campaigning through the SMS gives us an edge to reach out especially to the middle-class and educated community," said senior PAS official Mohamad Hatta Ramli.

Apart from its low cost advantage, SMS is the easiest, fastest and most efficient way to get their message across given Malaysia's high mobile phone penetration rate, officials say. Some 10 million out of Malaysia's 25 million people carry mobile phones and the number is growing.

Chinese and Indian parties in the BN, as well as other opposition parties have also gone into the SMS war with short messages scripted in Mandarin and Tamil for the minority communities.

M Kayveas, who heads the People's Progressive Party which is a tiny member of the BN, estimated that more than half of the 10.3 million voters in upcoming polls owned a mobile phone and said SMS would help the coalition closed the gap with the younger generation.

"The SMS is becoming a craze here. Mobile phone is our new battle field because it is much easier and more effective than a door-to-door campaign. We can reach out to the younger generation," said Kayveas, who is also a deputy minister in the prime minister's treatment.

Dirty side

His Indian-based party on Wednesday launched a campaign dubbed "One million SMS to support the BN and PM Abdullah." It involves sending out messages to supporters, and getting them to reply in support of the coalition.

But the SMS battle is not without its dirty side.

Messages attacking individuals or parties have been circulated with the sources withheld, prompting Umno Youth wing to set up a monitoring unit in an attempt to counter them.

One SMS purpotedly supporting PAS carries the logo of its moon flag and goes: "God is Great. Jihad for the well-being of the world and the after-life."

But PAS officials are concerned that such messages suggesting Islamic militancy and extremism would create fear among voters and harm the party's chances. Mohamad Hatta said it could be the work of supporters or pranksters, and PAS would keep its message simple. - AFP