Asia Times: Thwarted in print, Malaysian opposition tries Web news


	May 05, 2000	atimes.com

Southeast Asia

Thwarted in print, Malaysia's Harakah turns to Web
By Anil Netto

PENANG, Malaysia - First came the websites critical of the government, and then the country's first online newspaper that is decidedly not too fond of Kuala Lumpur. Now Malaysia's opposition is poised to launch newscasts on the Web, which has so far gone untouched by state censors.

Indeed, the Islamic Party (PAS), a member of the four-party opposition Barisan Alternatif (Alternative Front), has been conducting daily test transmissions for more than two weeks now in preparation for the launch of its ''Web TV'' on May 13. The tests featured mainly opposition events, the kind of news that would have little chance of airing on mainstream television.

''It's an attempt to find ways and means of using information and communications technology to reach out to people and to provide a platform for them to express their views,'' says media analyst Dr Mustafa Anuar of the PAS project, which will be appearing on the website of its paper Harakah (http://www.harakahdaily.com).

To be sure, PAS and other opposition groups had been fast running out of media options, which until recently had been limited to print.

Since its share of support from ethnic Malays plunged to just half, as revealed in last November's elections, the ruling Barisan Nasional coalition has hit out at independent and opposition print media that it believes contributed to the decrease in its political fortunes. Early this year, for instance, authorities confiscated copies of the bilingual paper Harakah, which were being sold openly at news stands. A government ruling forbids party newsletters - which is what Harakah is, according to its publishing permit - from being sold to non-party members. But Harakah was still outselling other Malay-language newspapers, prompting authorities to slash the allowed frequency of publication of the paper from twice a week to twice a month.

Two other publications have suffered worse fates. Detik, a critical political Malay-language magazine, is now banned. And when the publishing permit of the weekly tabloid Eksklusif expired on April 15, the Home Affairs Ministry refused to renew it, said its publisher in a statement. Eksklusif was known for its critical political commentaries and essays.

The political opposition Barisan Alternatif has tried to lash back by launching a three-month boycott of three selected mainstream media outfits on February 1. Although it has been hard to determine if the effort had any effect, oppositionists say any dent in the outfits' circulation or viewership should be considered a success.

Fortunately for the opposition and independent media, there is still the Internet - and a promise by Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad not to touch it. The premier had made the pledge four years ago, in an effort to draw foreign investors to his Multimedia Super Corridor project, a fiber optic-wired, hi-tech zone south of the capital Kuala Lumpur.

Whether the government will eventually try to control or censor Internet content, despite Mahathir's declaration, remains to be seen. For now, though, opposition politicians, activists and independent-minded journalists have taken to the Internet like iron filings to a magnet and are holding Mahathir to his promise.

Mustafa says the PAS Web TV project is an indication that the party ''is trying to exploit the full potential of ICT. And this is where the test comes - whether Mahathir will come down hard on the use of cyberspace to propagate opposition views.''

So far, the only hiccups encountered by the project have been limited to ''net congestion'', or congested phone lines. According to PAS, it will provide a daily 15-minute news telecast over the Internet and two or three shorter ''breaking news'' clips throughout the day. The party has also reportedly hired six new staffers to get the Web TV project going and spent some 35,000 ringgit (more than $9,000) for new equipment. ''It depends on our ability,'' Harakah editor Zulkifli Sulung says of the venture's potential. ''If there is no further action from the government, we can get in touch with our readers more effectively this way.''

Video newsclips, of course, are already standard feature on many websites, especially those belonging to TV stations. Even the Malaysian private ntv7 has gotten into the act with its own Web video clips.

But opposition and independent websites have proved to be particularly popular in Malaysia, and a Web TV in one of the most visited sites could only attract more interest. Apart from the Harakah site, the other big draws are Laman Reformasi and malaysiakini, Malaysia's first Net newspaper. All three get thousands of hits per day.

Indications are such that popularity has not translated much into advertising revenues. Most advertisers still shun opposition websites for fear of any kind of repercussions.

Meanwhile, the approval of the application for a publishing permit by a supposedly independent new publication - Bebas, or Freedom - has been raising eyebrows.

Comments Mustafa: ''I am a bit suspicious. It's a bit out of character on the part of the government to issue a permit for a tabloid called Freedom. More so at a time when things are getting less liberal.''

(Inter Press Service)

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