YOURSAY | ‘Let's debate here and see who is more skillful in using their mental faculties.’

Utusan slams 'wild, racist and irresponsible' comments in M'kini

Hang Babeuf: DAP leader Ronnie Liu had said that, regardless of whether Lee Chong Wei or Lin Dan won the Olympic badminton semi-final match, a “Cina” would come out the victor.

Political blogger Lim Sian See said that he is a chauvinist, that Liu was putting race before nation. Liu said that his comment was made in the context of a viral joke which said the name “Dato Lee Chong Wei” stood for “Don’t Let China Win”.

“I was being sarcastic and taking a subtle dig at two media outlets and people who were always focusing on race or nationality rather than the performance of sportsmen,” said Liu.

The basis of Utusan Malaysia's accusation is that a DAP leader has said, "Never mind only a silver for Malaysia, so long as a Chinese (= an 'ethnic Chinese') gets the gold medal."

Note: This story was not reported by Malaysiakini.

It looks like the comment ("joke"?) may have been ill-advised, but Liu has some grounds for claiming misrepresentation by Utusan.

His comment, he insists, was offered as a pointed and sarcastic riposte ("in kind") to deflate the anti-Chinese scandal-mongering on this Olympic issue in certain Malay media.

Spinnot: Utusan is owned by a raced-based party Umno. It is expected to represent one race's viewpoints.

Malaysiakini is not owned by any political party. Umno's supporters are welcome to post comments in Malaysiakini. Let's debate here and see who are more skilful in using their mental faculties.

Anonymous 29051438068738: Given this agonised hand-wringing by Utusan’s Awang Selamat (or not), we are now supposed to conclude that "Apa lagi Cina mahu?" was deliberately chosen as a screaming Utusan headline "in the name of nation building, security and curbing seditious elements".

What next? A keynote address at a joint session of the US Congress by Malaysian Official 1 on good governance, thrift and transparency as the only weapons against fledgling kleptocracies?

Cascara: Yes, perhaps it would be a good idea for Utusan to show by example by not making “wild, racist and irresponsible comments”.

6th Generation Immigrant: I am apolitical. I read and write comments in Malaysiakini as a Malaysian. I subscribe to Malaysiakini.

I used to subscribe and read New Straits Times, The Star, Berita Harian and Utusan, but have since cancelled the deliveries.

The newspaper vendor enquired why I stopped after so many years. I replied that I did not want to, but these papers forced me to do it as they are not reporting the truth and always expose their main objective - to belittle every non-Malay Malaysian.

Apa lagi Utusan mahu? You have already succeeded in your insults and driven Malaysians to Malaysiakini. You are now questioning your own objective?

CQ Muar: Both MyKMU.net writer Ab Jalil Backer and Awang Selamat taking aim at Malaysiakini clearly shows how envious they are over the success of my favourite news portal.

For their information, comments contributed are those of individuals, who are more often than not, disgusted with the government and leaders for their weaknesses, irresponsibility, racism, favouritism, cronyism, corruption, etc.

Unlike those hiding under the cloak of hypocrisy, those from Malaysiakini expressed their true sentiments and disenchantment over those opportunist ministers and leaders, including the 1MDB saga headed by Malaysian Official 1.

Ab Jalil claimed that Malaysiakini is a platform for those unskilled in using their mental faculties? Really? Are you suggesting those from Utusan or even Kosmo are brilliant intellectuals with high degree of mental faculties?

Vijay47: Utusan, I proudly admit I am one of the many Malaysiakini readers who comment in the news portal about you. I equally confess that I have never written anything complimentary about you.

For the simple reason, as you are fully aware, that you do not deserve any bouquet at all, not when you represent the worst in journalism, racist creatures of garbage bins and cesspools and… I think you get the drift.

The only reason you survive is that you are under the patronage of Umno.

You describe us as "tidak mahir berfikir"; I am not sure about the others but where it concerns me, you might be right - some of my friends do see me in that light. But then again, you might be referring to the cybertroopers, inadvertent evidence of the total failure of our education system.

Threats? What threats? From us? You also accuse Malaysiakini of catering to "sleazy content". If I wanted sleazy, I would subscribe to Utusan.

Pemerhati: Quote: “Umno-owned Utusan Malaysia has taken aim at Malaysiakini for publishing what it described as ‘wild, racist and irresponsible’ comments by the news portal's readers”.

This is akin to and as believable as PW Botha, the president of the apartheid government of South Africa (from 1978 to 1984) saying that Nelson Mandela was a “wild, racist and irresponsible” person.

Tony Soprano: Malaysiakini commenters, the writing is on the wall. Enjoy writing what you want while you still can.

The only reason Malaysiakini still exists in its present freewheeling form is because of Dr Mahathir Mohamad's promise to the international community back in 1996 or so that the Internet would not be censored. He made that pledge to attract corporations to Cyberjaya, the Silicon Valley clone which is now a miserable failure that houses only call centres and customer service outfits.

There's little reason for a government like Malaysia's to continue tolerating a free press, even online.

Rubystar_4037: Hello Utusan, a news portal is only as good as the readership audience that it attracts. There are numerous comments in Malaysiakini that are penned by worthy, highly educated and worldly wise readers, written in excellent English, substantiated with facts, relevant to the post as well as thought-provoking.

We also have to separate the wheat from the chaff, as there are also a lot of comments from paid BN bloggers with poor English, that have no relevancy, often rhetorical, noisy and of irritating repetition.

One can smell all these false-flag comments a mile upwind. So what have you got for your readers, Utusan?

Telestai: Awang Selamat, understand that Malaysiakini is a news portal that allows paid subscribers to post comments. The subscriber bears full responsibility for his comments and as long as the comment is not distasteful, Malaysiakini has no reason to intervene.

However, the same cannot be said about Utusan which regularly publishes racist and hurtful articles. The latest example is the one lamenting about the badminton mixed doubles’ failure to win a gold medal.

One Malaysia: Utusan, put some quality and truth into your reporting and there might be a chance that you'll get more people to read your paper. Right now, even free distribution wouldn't help.

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