WHILE Singapore pursues an improved public image on the Internet, the Malaysian Government is adopting a more traditional approach to controlling information. Deputy Home Minister Megat Junid Megat Ayub is threatening to ban three newspapers that allegedly undermine racial harmony. The newspapers have two weeks to mend their ways or face the revocation of their publication permits.
Proponents of 'Asian values' will expect the defenders of a Western-style free press to react in immediate condemnation of the Malaysian move. That will indeed be the reaction, and rightly so, if there is any suspicion the Government is using racial harmony as an excuse for silencing its opponents. The case for outrage would be all the stronger in the light of Malaysian Deputy Prime Minister Dr Anwar Ibrahim's statement on a recent visit to Hong Kong that Asian journalists should not fear criticising the ruling elite. Malaysia's system of licensing newspapers can easily be abused, whatever the Government's public position.
But few Western nations tolerate total freedom to incite racial hatred. On the contrary, some may be more sensitive to racism than certain of their counterparts in East Asia. Their media laws reflect that sensitivity to the point where, in some jurisdictions, mention of a person's race or colour is not permitted if it is not directly relevant to the story. Not even the most uncompromising opponent of Asian authoritarianism would demand the freedom to churn out racist incitement - particularly in a country like Malaysia with a history of racial strife which the Government is trying to avoid. Nevertheless, the minister should be reminded that it is not always necessary to close a newspaper for the sake of its offensive opinions. Unless the publications concerned exist solely to peddle rabid propaganda, stiff legal sanctions for overstepping the mark on race should be enough to bring them to heel.
