Bersih: Fulfil media freedom pledges, avoid replicating Najib era censorship

Electoral watchdog Bersih has called on the government to honour its commitment to safeguarding free speech and media freedom.

This comes after the UtusanTV.com website was blocked from public access.

Bersih noted that the situation resembled the censorship of former premier Najib Abdul Razak’s administration, where news portals critical of his government or seen as "supporting" the opposition were blocked.

The group pointed out that this caused Pakatan Harapan to include promises to repeal the Sedition Act 1948, Communications and Multimedia Act (CMA) 1998, and Printing Presses and Publications Act (PPPA) 1984 in its manifestos for the previous general elections.

“During that era, Harapan was denied access to government media platforms and any reports on them by these media were skewed and unflattering.

“Bersih calls on the government of Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim to honour his pledge, as laid out in his coalition's manifestos, to defend free speech and protect media freedom.

“UtusanTV.com must be unblocked immediately,” it said in a statement today.

Yesterday, it was reported that attempts to access UtusanTV.com resulted in redirection to a generic government notice claiming a violation of law, without specifying the nature of the violation.

A link was provided for more information but it did not work.

UtusanTV.com is a spinoff of Utusan Malaysia’s lifestyle section.

It was set up by its former staff after its parent company Utusan Melayu (Malaysia) Berhad was closed in 2019 due to financial troubles.

The Utusan Malaysia newspaper was relaunched in 2020 under new management and is not affiliated with UtusanTV.com.

Since Harapan’s first stint in government in 2018, the coalition has been criticised for not fulfilling its promises regarding the repeal of the aforementioned acts.

Criticisms grew larger after the coalition returned to power last November, this time with BN and GPS in tow.

Up to this point, the government promised to review the Sedition Act, while Communications and Digital Minister Fahmi Fadzil indicated that Putrajaya has yet to decide on the abolition of the PPPA.

Censorship alternatives

Bersih suggested for the Parliamentary Special Select Committee (PSSC) hold hearings for public input on amending the CMA which could also democratise the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC).

Meanwhile, the group noted that despite the rising concern of 3R (race, religion and royalty) issues, there were alternative methods that the government can use instead of media censorship.

“Should there be any concerns about the content of a media organisation, a transparent process with a show cause letter and appeal opportunity (can be made) before blocking.

“If a crackdown is driven by partisan calculation, the suppressed voices will only grow stronger, posing a greater danger to inclusion and stability.

“The Harapan-led coalition administration continues to treat government-owned public broadcast media as their private assets and deny critical views by the opposition from being aired,” it added.

Bersih expressed the need for government-owned media such as Bernama and RTM to offer unbiased airtime to all coalition leaders, enabling them to discuss their manifestos.

Additionally, it hoped for fair media coverage, including political debates between different coalitions and parties.

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