Author: danyogafit

In light of the its aim to encourage the people to use the internet as a means of disseminating information, the Malaysian government has restored access to the Malaysia Today news portal, together with the other sites which have been blocked since January 2008. According to the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC), more than […]

A new legal wrangle might join the criminal defamation charges and defamation law suits sitting on the doorstep of Raja Petra Kamarudin (RPK). Newspapers reported recently that the Department of Islamic Development (Jakim) and other Muslim bodies had lodged a police report against him for allegedly insulting the Malays, Muslims and Islam.

The articles in question, ”I promise to be a good, non-hypocritical Muslim” and “Not all Arabs are descendants of the Prophet”, are found on his now-blocked website, “Malaysia Today”.

  Malaysian blogger Syed Azidi Syed Aziz, or kickdefella, was arrested today. From initial reports, it is not clear if he was arrested for inciting the public to fly the national flag upside-down or for an article he wrote. Other reports suggest that Syed Azidi is being investigated under Section 4 (1) of the Sedition Act. According to reports, Syed Azidi was arrested at his […]

Local newspapers report a little bump in Muhammad Shafee Abdullah’s defamation proceedings against Raja Petra Kamaruddin (RPK), when the High Court today ordered Shafee to appoint a lawyer. RPK’s lawyer, Manjeet Singh, had pointed out that Shafee may not represent himself in a case in which he has reason to believe that he will be called on as a witness in the hearing.

Yet, this is a tiny delay in the overall defamation highway along Malaysia’s cyber plains. In 2008 alone, three high profile defamation cases have hit the headlines, two of which involve RPK, the other involving Ahmad Lufty Othman of detikdaily.

Amidst uproar from Malaysian netizens, today’s announcement by the Energy, Water & Communications Minister, Datuk Shaziman Abu Mansur, has put a new kink in the plot. Datuk Shaziman was reported to have said that the government had not ordered the Malaysian Today website to be banned.

According to news reports, Datuk Shaziman stated that the government only gave “general instruction” to the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) to allow all blogs and websites to function provided they adhered to provisions under the Communications and Multimedia Act 1998. In the same report, Datuk Shaziman confirmed the commission’s independence, and that he “was told” by the commission that they intended to block the news portal under the provisions of s. 263 of the Act.

The establishment of an independent press council may help protect journalists and Internet activists like Raja Petra Kamarudin, writes Daniel Chandranayagam Tan is a young Malaysian, newly employed in the private sector. Like many Malaysians his age, Tan is a product of the Mahathir era, having heeded the call to get a degree, and help Malaysia develop into […]

Despite jubilation over the Opposition’s win in the 26th August by-elections, political bloggers in Malaysia face the sobering prospect of the government taking tougher action against blog and website owners.

Online news has reported that the government is serious in countering online allegations against them by taking alleged wrongdoers to court for defamation and sedition. This decision was said to have been reached during a meeting last week involving several Cabinet ministers and senior government officials, including Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak.

Since August 3rd, some Malaysian blogs have featured the national flag (or “Jalur Gemilang“) posted upside-down as a sign of a nation in distress. The call was said to be have been made by blogger Sheih aka ‘kickdefella‘ from the country’s east coast, a call which many bloggers have taken to. Some bloggers have deigned to show disrespect to the flag, although they have posted the ruling party’s flag upside down on their blog.

How do you draw the public’s attention away from online media?

The answer is not to detain another blogger for sedition.

Malaysian bloggers were up in arms again when blogger Bakaq aka ‘Penarik Beca’ was detained for sedition recently. Bakaq, whose real name is Abdul Rashi Abu Bakar, was detained (and since released) for defacing the Royal Malaysian Police crest by allegedly substituting the tiger in the emblem with a dog.