Info Ministry or Umno Ministry?

By Dr Lim Teck Ghee and Helen Ang

COMMENT TV2 producer Chou Z Lam issued a statement on Wednesday that the third part of his Mandarin documentary on the Bakun Dam was forced off the air under the direct instruction of RTM director-general Ibrahim Yahaya.

When contacted by Malaysiakini, Ibrahim denied that he had ordered the cancellation of Wednesday’s segment. “I did not give such orders... you should ask Chou instead,” Ibrahim was quoted as saying.

Be that as it may, there is still the poser as to why the fourth episode scheduled for yesterday at 12.20pm under the programme slot “National Gallery Mandarin” was not shown. Unless a clarification is forthcoming from RTM, the question mark remains.

In the meantime, the public will be forgiven for construing that the axing of the rest of Chou’s 10-part series* is yet another example of interference by Umno apparatchik deeply embedded in the civil service and strategic public agencies.

Chou has stated that when he approached his supervisors and several RTM officers for an explanation, he was told by newsroom chief executive Jumat Engson that the decision was due to some “sensitive elements” in the documentary.

It was also intimated to Chou that its screening was deemed possibly “harmful” to the upcoming Sibu by-election as well as the Sarawak state election, which is on the cards. He was made to understand that the documentary might be postponed to “another time” when the political situation permitted.

1Media, 1Propaganda

Chou said he personally appealed to Deputy Minister of Information, Communication and Culture Heng Seai Kie for help in resolving the matter but was told that “we would not interfere with your internal matter”. Chou said this response was communicated to him through the deputy minister’s private secretary, a Mr Lee.

Heng is a senator from MCA and her response is, predictably, indicative of the party’s lack of spine on genuine independence of the press. After all, MCA is owner of the spineless Star.

All these developments point clearly to the fact that it is the political masters controlling the media outlets that dictate the agenda. They are abetted by compliant editors who tread on eggshells in practising self-censorship on the pretext of “preserving national harmony”.

With the nexus of politics, patronage and public office, one does not know where Umno ends and the Ministry of Misinformation begins, and where the orbits of RTM and other satellites fall into the gravitational pull of Umno – the centre radiating raw power around which all revolve.

RTM is a government agency that, on paper, is supposed to serve the interest of the rakyat. But we know otherwise.

The symbiosis between Umno and the other media is just as discernible if one looks into the movements of the industry’s high-flying careerists. Ibrahim was a long-time Berita Harian editor, and this Malay daily is considered an asset in the Umno investment portfolio.

That the mainstream media (MSM) works mostly to further the Umno and Barisan agenda has been especially evident since their emasculation following Ops Lalang.

As recently as the Hulu Selangor by-election last weekend, media monitors have noted that MSM was largely supportive of Barisan candidate P Kamalanathan while running down the Pakatan Rakyat candidate Zaid Ibrahim.

Old boys’ network

It was barely less than a week ago too that ntv7 producer Joshua Wong Ngee Choong alleged interference and political pressure. Wong made public a claim that he was “advised” by Media Prima group editor (news and current affairs) Manja Ismail not to invite an opposition MP as guest speaker on his Chinese talk show.

Like Ibrahim, Manja comes from a Berita Harian background and was the paper’s group editor. Berita Harian is part of the Media Prima conglomerate which is government and Umno-linked.

For attempting to present news that conveys critical but necessary perspectives, Wong and Chou have the sword of Damocles hanging over their heads.

However, there is another group – mainly the media bigwigs – that sanitise or massage the news to cast the BN government in the best light possible.

Among these are prominent personalities such as Malaysian Press Institute chief executive Chamil Wariya, formerly a managing editor of TV3 and earlier, features editor in Utusan. Chamil gained notoriety for writing the “fictional” short story about the assassination of a Yang Berhormat bearing close resemblance to Teresa Kok.

The crossover of media personalities between government-controlled entities and private media companies – and at times on secondment – is a seamless osmosis. One example (without casting any aspersions) is Azman Ujang who retired from his post as Bernama general manager in 2008 and was appointed non-executive director of Berjaya Media Bhd the same year. Berjaya Media – formerly known as Nexnews Bhd (that controlled financial weekly The Edge) – is the publisher of theSun.

This osmosis reflects the nature of the Malaysian media landscape where key players and participants work hand in glove with the politicians.

For instance, the press secretaries of Najib Tun Razak and Muhyiddin Yassin were formerly reporters with NST. Both these press aides – Tengku Sharifuddin Tengku Ahmad and Ainon Mohd – are today Datuks. Wong Chun Wai (he has several Datuk titles under his belt) has written before in his column of doing social lunch with KJ – at that time when Khairy Jamaluddin was the sitting PM’s influential son-in-law.

Rewarded for services to the state are Datuks galore, both within and from the Press industry. Ibrahim, Manja, Chamil and Azman are all Datuks. Recipients of Datukships this year include Malay Mail chief Ahirudin Attan (better known as Rocky) and most recently NSTP group managing editor Zainul Arifin Mohammed Isa – on the same royal occasion as Perak deputy speaker Hee Yit Foong.

Adopt best practices

Unlike our media Datuks and wannabe Datuks, ntv7’s Wong who resigned and TV2’s Chou who went public with his story will suffer in their career prospects and in other ways for standing firm on the issue of press freedom. They should not have to pay this price; hence we call on ntv7 to reinstate Wong in his job.

We also urge that reforms be made to RTM so that it caters to all Malaysians and not operate as the hand maiden of Umno. We call on RTM to take a leaf from the fair practices outlined in the editorial policy of British broadcaster, the BBC, whose principles of political impartiality provide an avenue for a diversity of opinions, unlike here where only pro-establishment views get airtime.

Frankly, we are not surprised that MSM and their top guns have largely elected to keep silent on both the cases of Wong and Chou. But other staffers in the media need to voice their concerns individually and collectively. Bodies like the National Union of Journalists must make a strong stand on preserving media autonomy. The NUJ owes the public a statement on these two episodes at the very least.

Meanwhile, the public who are consumers (as viewers and readers) should not remain mute and unconcerned. We need to show our solidarity with these two principled Malaysians who have spoken out on the behind-the-scenes goings-on in the industry and are trying to protect our media freedom from the predatory state.

Responsible journalists who know that they have produced accurate reports want to get the truth out to the public.

However, having the entire government machinery oppressing the press, and a slew of laws pressuring our media to toe the line will never encourage the profession to question official policy nor embolden them to report abuses and failures in the system.The onus is therefore on the public to demand that RTM be accountable to us, and not to Umno, and to break the monopoly that Barisan exerts over media ownership and licensing.

*The Chinese documentary was doing a follow-up on Sarawak natives affected by the dam construction. Some 10,000 indigenous peoples of the Belaga area had been compelled by the project to relocate to the Sungai Asap and Sungai Koyan areas in 1998. They are mainly farmers currently confronted with the problem of sustaining their livelihood in the agricultural sector, and facing a shortage of facilities and subsidies.

Lim Teck Ghee is the director of Centre for Policy Initiatives while Helen Ang is CPI researcher.