I am shocked by the recent action of the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) which fined Astro for airing a film in 2015. Day by day, the Muhyddin administration has shown itself to be highly antagonistic to the fourth estate, i.e. the media.
Why did MCMC take action only after five years the film was aired? The film by Al-Jazeera which documented the bizarre murder of Altantuya Shaariibuu should be more sensitive to the then Prime Minister than to the current government. Is this a case of “lebih sudu dari kuah”?
The signal given by MCMC to all media practitioners is loud and clear: Big Brother is watching you!
This is the second dispute involving the government and Al-Jazeera after Tan Sri Muhyiddin took over as Prime Minister in March 2020. Is the latest action an act of vengeance following Al-Jazeera’s latest film “Locked Up in Malaysia’s Lockdown”?
Prior to this, in May this year, a journalist with the South China Morning Post, Tashny Sukumaran was summoned by police after her coverage on the authority’s raids on migrant workers. Although Minister of Communication and Multimedia Dato Seri Saifuddin Abdullah had instructed authority not to investigate the case further, it cannot be denied that there have been increased interferences and oppression of the media since Tan Sri Muhyiddin took over in March.
I would like to remind both the Prime Minister and the Communication Minister that Malaysia’s ranking in World Press Freedom Index had improved for two consecutive years under the Pakatan Harapan government. Malaysia was only ranked at 145 out of 180 countries during Barisan Nasional’s tenure in 2018. Yet, we are now ranked at 101 out of 180 countries before the fall of Pakatan Harapan government.
Are we going to see Malaysia’s ranking in the World Press Freedom Index drop massively in six months’ time? If business as usual continues, it is almost confirmed that Malaysia’s reputation in press freedom will deteriorate.
By fining Astro for airing Al-Jazeera’s film on the murder of Altantuya Shaariibuu, is Muhyiddin’s government going to overtake BN government to be the worst performer in press freedom? Are we slowly going down the spiral of media oppression and the suppression of democracy in this country?