Malaysia Stages Internet Blackout To Protest New Censorship Law

redletterdave writes "Malaysian netizens, opposition politicians, well-known bloggers and non-governmental organizations staged an Internet blackout Tuesday to protest and raise awareness about legislation that could threaten free expression on the Web. According to Malaysia's Centre for Independent Journalism (CIJ), the second of two amendments to the Malaysian Evidence Act of 1950, also known as Section 114A, 'enables law enforcement officials to swiftly hold someone accountable (PDF) for publishing seditious, defamatory, or libelous content online.' In addition, those accused of posting this kind of content will be 'assumed to be guilty until proven innocent,' which completely flies in the face of the typical logic of the traditional judicial process, which is 'innocent until proven guilty.' The CIJ warns that 'if allegedly defamatory content is traced back to your username, electronic device, and/or Wi-Fi network, Section 114A presumes you are guilty of publishing illicit content on the Internet.' The CIJ organized Tuesday's blackout, where participating sites blacked out their names and services with messages that read, 'This is what the Web could look like.'"

Comments

It's political. Period.

[el_flynn]

This is nothing more than political maneouvering by the ruling government.

It's been done before, and will continue to be done. Especially because a General Election is coming up. If you read that link I posted, it was reported that the Malaysian prime minister said "Whatever we do, we must put people first,". If that were truly the case, why wasn't that position taken in the first place before the law was passed?

Basically:
1. Pass draconian law
2. Wait for public outcry
3. Repeal draconian law
4. Look like a hero
5. Profit!

Censorship

[Taco Cowboy]

Malaysia is an Islamic country

From Saudi Arabia to Malaysia to Iran to Bangladesh, we see a pattern --- Islamic countries aren't actually famous for their tolerance of free speech

But of course, not all countries that do not allow free speech are Islamic countries. North Korea and Cuba are not Islamic, but then, they are commies

I guess the commies are in bed with the Islamists on their quest to snuff out all free speech
 

Re:Censorship

[Anonymous Coward]

The UK apparently doesn't tolerate freedom of speech/press either. Just take a look at the earlier story about that guy who is getting four years in prison simply for posting text on his web site.

Re:Censorship

[Mashiki]

Turkey is an Islamic country too. They don't have this problem. The problem isn't Islam. It's the jackasses who use Islam as an excuse.

Uh. You might want to pay a bit more attention to the world, back in 2008, when the Islamist's started rising to power they amended a bunch of stuff restricting free speech, and a bunch of other things. Hey guess what, you remember Egypt? Wanna guess what's happening there, or do I need to spell it out for you as the Islamists are rising to power there. Goodbye freedoms.

You can believe what you want, but the last time I looked. If someone took a glass filled it with piss and dumped a cruifix in it(let's not forget that it's already been an art exhibit too). You'll get some disgusted looks here in the west, and you'll probably get some people protesting you. Now you try that with a Koran, I'll bet you'll get your first death threat inside of 10minutes, and have your first riot inside an hour. And of course, you'll probably need to go into hiding. That's much more serious than say, oh ... drawing a cartoon.