Transcript Document

Please note that pictures have been removed from this
presentation to make it small enough to upload to the internet
Increasing access to
information and debate
November 5, 2007
Blogging & Digital Democracy in
Malaysia and Southeast Asia
Jeff Ooi
www.jeffooi.com
MALAYSIA:
Traditional vs. Online
in the Media Eco-System
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Key Challenges
• Media blackout
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Mainstream media owned by ruling political parties
Group Editors-in-Chief are political appointees
Editorial self-censorship
Annual renewal of publishing & printing license
Fear of advertising pullout
• Media attacks
– Mainstream media attacking bloggers using various
pretexts
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Key Challenges
• Muzzling of New Media & Bloggers
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2004: Police raids of Malaysiakini
2004: ISA threat on blogger Jeff Ooi
2005: Police interrogation on blogger Jeff Ooi
2006: Withdrawal of publishing contracts to journoblogger A Kadir Jasin
2007: Defamation suits against bloggers Jeff Ooi &
journo-blogger Rocky (Ahirudin Attan)
2007: Detention of blogger Nathanial Tan
2007: Grueling interrogation of blogger Raja Petra
2007: Withdrawal of bulk magazine subscription
contracts to journo-blogger A Kadir Jasin
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Old Power Paradigm
• Control
• Fear Factor
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Political ownership of Mainstream Media
Images from Malaysiakini
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Malaysia: No Internet Censorship
• CMA 1998: Part I Section 3(3):
Nothing in this Act shall be construed as permitting the
censorship of the Internet
• MSC 10 Bill of Guarantee:
#7: Ensure no Internet censorship
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CMA 1998 & Content Code
Part 5 Section 3.5:
• The Online environment is not a legal vacuum.
• In general, if something is illegal "off-line", it will also
be illegal "on-line".
• In this matter, the relevant existing laws apply.
Sub-section 6.2 says compliance with the Content Code shall be voluntary.
However, Sub-section 6.3 also states that:
"Compliance with this Code shall be a defence against any prosecution, action
or proceeding of any nature, whether in court or otherwise as stated under
Section 98 (2) of the Act."
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Internet is not a legal vacuum
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Computer Crimes Act 1997
Digital Signature 1997
Copyright (Amendment) Act 1997
Communications & Multimedia Act 1998
• Content Code (2004)
Telemedicine Act 1997
Sedition Act 1948
Defamation Act 1957
Official Secrets Act 1972
Internal Security Act 1960
Printing Presses and Publications Act 1984
Penal Code
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Grappling with Networked Communications
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Incident #1: October 3, 2004
• CMA 1998 Section 256(2)&(3): MCMC, Oct 9, 2004
• Penal Code Section 298(a): Police, Feb 29, 2005
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Incident #2: August 04-29, 2006
• P. Gunasegaram & Ho Kay Tat vs. Jeff Ooi
• Mediator: Complaints Tribunal, CMCF
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theSun, Aug 4, 2006
theSun, Aug 29, 2006
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Issues emerging
• “PG Rating” for the Internet aka
“Why Internet gangsterism must remain illegal”
• Pre-Moderated commentaries on blogs ala
Letters to Editor?
• Circumventing the arm of law:
• Hosting servers overseas
URL:
http://www.jeffooi.com/2006/08/p_gunasegaram_says_his_life_is_1.php
Demonising bloggers
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Fear Factor
Shaziman Abu Mansor, Deputy Energy, Water and Communications Minister
SOURCE: Berita Harian August 23, 2006
Incident #3: January 11, 2007
Blogger Jeff Ooi & blogger/former editor Ahiruddin Attan sued by New Straits
Times Press & editors for defamation. Case pending disposal.
Incident #4: July 14, 2007
Blogger Nathanial Tan (aide to former deputy prime minister) remanded for
four days under Official Secret Act, but case never proven in court.
Incident #5: July 23, 2007
Police interrogated blogger Raja Petra Kamarudin for 8 hours after Umno filed
police report under Section 121 (B) and Section 123 of the Penal Code,
Section 4 of the Sedition Act 1948 and Section 263 and Section 266 of the
Communications and Multimedia Act 1998. Case pending disposal.
Response from Civil Society:
• National Alliance of Bloggers (ALL-BLOGS): April 5, 2007
Objectives: Promoting blogging and protect bloggers
Strategies: Engage and embrace
Response from Civil Society:
• ALL-BLOGS Forum (Global Rising) : October 3, 2007
Theme: Blogs & Digital Democracy
Speaker: David Sasaki, Rising Voices (Global Voices Online)
Response from Civil Society:
• People’s Parliament (Haris Ibrahim)
Focus: Parliamentary governance & upholding Constitution (secular state)
• August: People’s Independence Day
• October: People’s petition to the King on judiciary rot
• URL: harismibrahim.wordpress.com
Response from Civil Society:
• Constitutional Disquiet (Malik Imtiaz Sarwar)
Theme: Parliamentary governance & human rights
• URL: malikimtiaz.blogspot.com
Response from Civil Society:
• Citizen Think Tank (Sean Ang, Dzul Bahrin etc )
Theme: The Knowledge-empowered Citizens
Focus: Politician Watchdog (Rating of Parlimentarians, National Survey etc)
• URL: www.citizenthinktan.com
Response from Civil Society:
• Former Prime Minister’s daughter (Marina Mahathir )
Theme: Freedom of Expression
Focus: Social commentary
• URL: eantingbyMM.blogspot.com
Press Freedom Ranking
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RSF Report 2005
• 16 of the 53 journalists killed in 2004 died in
Asia
• 46 of the world’s 104 imprisoned journalists
were in Asia -- as at 1st January 2005
• China: 27 imprisoned by 2005, 48 by 2006
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RSF Report 2007
• Bloggers are now threatened as much as
journalists in traditional media.
– 26 bloggers and online journalists have been
convicted and jailed since September 2006 for using
their right to online free expression.
– China, ranking 163rd among 169 countries surveyed,
still reigns supreme as the world's biggest prison for
bloggers and online journalists.
China
Thailand
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Thailand
Myanmar
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Cambodia
Cambodia
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The Internet ‘Black Holes’
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RSF’s 15 Enemies of Internet
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Belarus
Burma
China
Cuba
Iran
Libya
Nepal
North Korea
Saudi Arabia
Syria
Maldives
Tunisia
Turkmenistan
Uzbekistan
Vietnam
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Findings of Open Net Initiatives (ONI)
• Filtering regime:
• Most sophisticated, systematic, comprehensive,
pervasive, effective & targetted filtering regime
• Legal regulation plus technical control
• Strict media regulation
• Protection of national secrets
• Control of ISPs, content providers
• “The Great Firewall of China”
Ray of Hope
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Key issue on Internet governance
Must blogs/websites be liable for
postings by other parties?
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US Supreme Court California
Nov 20, 2006 – VERDICT:
• Websites that publish inflammatory
information written by other parties cannot
be sued for libel
• Communications Decency Act of 1996
provides broad immunity from defamation
lawsuits
• Unless Congress revises the existing law,
people who claim they were defamed in an
Internet posting can only seek damages
from the original source of the statement
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US Supreme Court California
Nov 20, 2006 – IMPLICATIONS:
• US media -- It's a victory for bloggers,
newsgroup participants and other web
content publishers
• US legal experts -- The ruling follows
similar decisions in other states designed to
protect free and open access to information
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What’s next?
• ‘Freedom of Information Act’?
In Summary
Blogging is a long Salt March…
First they ignore you,
then they laugh at you,
then they fight you,
then you win.
Mahatma Ghandi
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