Benarkah orang-orang dan perayaan bukan Islam menggugat Islam di Malaysia? Dan apakah patut pemimpin Islam melakukan kekerasan dan diskriminasi terhadap orang bukan Islam sepertimana yang dilakukan oleh Jais terhadap Persatuan Bible Malaysia minggu lalu?
censorship
Uncommon Sense with Wong Chin Huat: On the “Allah” judgement
By Jacqueline Ann Surin
The Court of Appeal’s ruling in support of the government’s ban on non-Muslims using “Allah” was not unexpected. Dr Wong Chin Huat spells out the judgment’s far-reaching implications and posits that Sabahans and Sarawakians are the ones who are now poised to show Putrajaya what Malaysia needs most.
Religious raids: Can they or can’t they?
By Ding Jo-Ann
CAN religious authorities like Jawi and Jais raid companies, confiscate books and detain Muslims for publishing and selling a book that is deemed a threat to Muslims in Malaysia? What laws empower religious state authorities to act in the way they have over Irshad Manji’s book? And what laws protect citizens and companies from arbitrary action?
The print media’s failures in Bersih 3.0
By Ding Jo-Ann
IT’S been all about Bersih 3.0 this past week. Stories, tweets, photographs and videos have been shared. And numerous reports have been published by the national press. And yet, anybody reading just the national print media would be left with an incomplete picture of one of the most historic moments in Malaysia’s political development. Ding Jo-Ann shows how the press in Malaysia failed readers in their coverage of Bersih 3.0.
Restricting the government’s choices?
Holding Court by Ding Jo-Ann
IT was troubling to read Home Minister Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Hussein’s reasons for the release of eight immigration officers detained without trial under the Internal Security Act (ISA). Hishammuddin said he decided to release the eight, detained “in connection” with human trafficking activities, because they showed “remorse” over their mistakes. He also considered their wishes […]
Umno’s tangle over “Allah”
By Jacqueline Ann Surin
YET again, in the tussle over “Allah” and Malay-language Bibles, the Umno-led Barisan Nasional government shows how unclear it is about what it means to respect the religious rights of non-Muslims.
Regulating the internet: What’s BN afraid of?
Holding Court by Ding Jo-Ann
CAN the Malaysian government actually be thinking of imposing more controls on our already overly-regulated right to freedom of expression? There’s a myriad of laws available to arrest, charge, fine and jail Malaysians for speaking their minds in ways the government disapproves of. But apparently, these controls are still not enough. On 24 Jan 2011 […]
The impossibility of policing the web
By Sonia Randhawa
The endless distractions on Facebook are the bane of my working life. As a freelance consultant, I need discipline and a strict schedule to meet tight deadlines. But then a friend from university announces his baby is having problems feeding, and so I stop my work to suggest strategies for feeding babies. Or to respond […]
Seditious Malaysia: More to come
By Ding Jo-AnnHARDLY a month goes by in Malaysia without someone being accused of sedition. And now, the government wants to introduce new sedition guidelines for the internet even though the Sedition Act already clearly undermines freedom of expression. Just what is the government up to?
Why the government fears satire
Holding Court by Ding Jo-Ann
WHY is the government charging someone for writing a satirical piece? On 2 Sep 2010, Irwan Abdul Rahman, a Malay Mail executive editor was charged over a blog posting entitled “TNB to sue WWF over earth hour.” Irwan’s posting on his website Nose4news was below a huge banner with the words “The truth is out […]
