COMMENT I was on holiday with my children when I read about how two Australian broadcasting journalists were arrested and detained in jail for one night.

This, along with the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission’s blocking of several websites, has raised another question whether Malaysia has descended into becoming another rogue nation in the eyes of the world.

For this, I fully agree that the Canberra will bring this matter to the highest authority possible in Putrajaya to stop this nonsense altogether. Such a matter should not have happened in the first place, especially when Malaysia is a friendly nation to Australia.

The incident is therefore regrettable and should never be repeated again, especially when Deputy Prime Minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi has rubbed salt further into the wound by saying that journalists must follow certain local ethics.

As far as we know it, these two journalists, Linton Besser and Louie Eroglu, are on an investigative journalism programme for the Australian Broadcasting Corporation’s (ABC) ‘Four Corners’ programme.

Their job is to obtain a response from Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak himself. As the country’s leader, Najib has an obligation to answer any allegations made against him, especially when it involves the reputation of the country.

Travelled this far

Where Besser and Eroglu are concerned, they have travelled this far to obtain the official reply from Najib. This is being fair to Najib, instead of ABC publishing only the allegation side of the story against Najib.

Instead of taking it positively, the duo were arrested, and inspector-general of police Khalid Abu Bakar is said to have discussed the matter with attorney-general Mohamed Apandi Ali.

The latest is that we learnt from Deputy Home Minister Nur Jazlan Mohamed that they were to be deported for breaching immigration laws . So far, they have not been charged, because there is no basis for charging them.

If these two journalists had indeed been charged in the course of carrying out their duty, this would put Malaysia in a bad light once again, no thanks to people like Najib, Khalid and Apandi.

Elsewhere, whether in the United States or even in Hong Kong, journalists do barge into politicians and celebrities who try to escape their cameras. Even the Princess of Wales, the late Diana Spencer, was tailed by paparazzi from time to time.

We should know better how to deal with these two international journalists especially since they are on an investigative trail. They are not inexperienced greenhorns who currently fill our local media.

Only people who are guilty would run away from them; innocent people who believe in their actions will stand up to the interrogations.

The whole world looks up to them to unravel the many hidden truths. Without these men of great courage, we would continue to be living in a blissful world where leaders continue to collaborate with the proxies for the underworld bosses.

We need more of these journalists in Malaysia, but sadly, we are lacking in good investigative journalism.

Best thing to do

The best that the Malaysian authorities can do with these journalists is to apologise for the misunderstanding, instead of deporting them.

To deal with the animosity of a worldwide media fraternity, the Malaysian authorities have to allow for these two journalists (or their replacements) to directly interview Najib in a more proper setting.

If Najib has nothing to hide, Najib should face the television camera to tell the world that the allegations are false. What transpired last week has further strengthened people’s suspicion that Najib was involved in a major scandal involving billions of ringgit deposited into his personal bank account.

At this juncture, Wall Street Journal had quoted several investigators that the amount could be around US$1 billion (now RM4.12billion) instead of the original US$681 million.

Anything less than an official apology and an arrangement for face-to-face interview with Najib would not be acceptable where good public relations is concerned. Najib is a public figure; therefore, he should stand up to face the allegations made against him, instead of running away like a defeated Bugis warrior.

STEPHEN NG is an ordinary citizen with an avid interest in following political developments in the country since 2008.