KUALA LUMPUR – PKR president Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim has cited the Perikatan Nasional (PN) administration’s increased authoritarianism as the cause for Malaysia’s dwindling press freedom.
Reporters Without Borders’ annual press freedom ranking for 2021 saw Malaysia plunging 18 places – the steepest drop from last year among all countries – as Southeast Asia remained mired near the lower end of the index.
Malaysia placed 119th out of 180 countries surveyed by the organization known by its French acronym, RSF.
“It is disheartening to learn that Malaysia has again dropped in its international prestige and reputation with respect to democracy, this time through the plunging score provided by Reporters Without Borders’ Annual Press Freedom Index.
“Further distressing is the RSF’s linking of this downgrading directly to the actions taken by the PN government,” Anwar said in a statement today.
His comments came in light of an analysis by RSF saying that Malaysia’s “astonishing 18-place fall, the biggest of any country in the index, is directly linked to the formation of a new coalition government in March 2020”.
Malaysia’s ranking in the press freedom index rose to 101 during Pakatan Harapan.
“The return of more authoritarian rule, along with increased prosecutions and flagrant violations of journalistic source confidentiality (are) other tenets of the PN government’s sullying of our national press freedom reputation,” Anwar added.
Anwar explained that RSF is aware of the rebirth of the Special Affairs Department (Jasa), which has been denounced as a government propaganda tool despite Putrajaya’s denials.
“It is also aware of the fact that the Sedition Act 1948, Official Secrets Act 1972, and Communications and Multimedia Act 1998 remain at the disposal of the government to be used against journalists,” said the Port Dickson MP.
He also said that such actions against journalists should be of grave concern, especially due to the fact services provided by a free and open press are essential to a properly functioning democracy.
“Our leaders’ reckless regard for the press not only affirms some of our worst assumptions about the PN government, but also adds insult to the injuries they have committed against the rakyat, disregarding their mandate last year,” he added. – The Vibes, April 21, 2021
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