IFJ 30 April 2021
Malaysia: Press freedom drops to new low
There are extreme concerns for journalism in Malaysia with a drastic drop in their national rankings of press freedom, following the release of the World Press Freedom Index 2021 by Reporters Without Borders (RSF). The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) and its affiliate the National Union of Journalists Malaysia) (NUJ) call on the Malaysian government to ensure decisions are made to protect journalists. A protester holds a sign during a demonstration to protest the ejection of the democratically elected government. Credit Mohd RASFAN / AFP
Malaysia has dropped 18 ranks, from 101 in 2020 to 119 in 2021 out of 180 in the recently released World Press Freedom Index. It follows a year of worsening restrictions on journalists both in Malaysia and across the world, justified by the Covid-19 pandemic.
Malaysian Cartoonist in the Crosshairs of Increasingly Repressive Government
Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin has used the coronavirus pandemic as a pretext to arm himself with emergency powers and silence dissenting voices.
April 30, 2021
The political cartoonist Zunar speaks at a conference in Seoul, South Korea, in October 2018.
Credit: Flickr/Khairil Yusof
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The gadfly political cartoonist Zunar is again facing a police probe in Malaysia over a satirical drawing that mocked a senior official, he said this week, a few days after a performance artist was arrested for insulting the country’s queen. In a statement to the press, Zunar (real name Zulkiflee Anwar Ul Haque) said that police in the northern state of Kedah had summoned him to appear on May 2.
Apr 30 2021 - WORLD PRESS FREEDOM DAY: a reminder to governments of their commitment to press freedom. This year’s World Press Freedom Day theme: “Information as a Public Good.”
It serves as a call to affirm the importance of cherishing information as a public good.
It is vital to have access to reliable information – especially in an era of misinformation.
Today, journalism is restricted in well over two thirds of the globe.
The 2021 World Press Freedom Index: journalism is “totally blocked or seriously impeded” in 73 nations.
“The pandemic has been used as grounds to block journalists’ access to information sources, and reporting in the field,” Reporters Without Borders (RSF) Secretary-General Christophe Deloire
Media still facing restrictions, say practitioners Ashraf Shamsul/THE SUN
PETALING JAYA: After a short respite, pressure on the Malaysian media to toe the line has risen again.
The increasing threat of legal action with draconian laws has reduced mainstream media to a mere government mouthpiece, according to stakeholders.
The National Union of Journalists cited the recent case of Malaysiakini being taken to court over a comment one of its readers left on its website as a sign of the deterioration of media freedom.
Its president Farah Marshita Abdul Patah told
theSun that such action was taken to serve as a warning to media personnel and companies not to cross the line.
FM Szijjártó to Blinken: US Should Not Worry about Democracy and Freedom in Hungary
Hungary lacks a democratic level of media freedom and is at risk of being heavily influenced by Moscow and Beijing, according to Secretary of State for the United States Anthony Blinken. In an online roundtable discussion with journalists from countries considered to have insufficient levels of media freedom, Blinken believes that Hungary needs a greater diversity of independent voices and opinions. The Biden Administration has made clear its intention of wanting positive relations with Hungary but standing by its commitment to support media freedom and the rule of law. Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade Péter Szijjártó said that the United States should not worry about democracy and freedom in Hungary.