Press Curbed, Malaysians Go On-Line for News : Mahathir Caught in Web Of Internet Awareness
International Herald Tribune
September 10, 1998
Thomas Fuller

Malaysia's headlong rush into information technology is receiving strong support these days, although perhaps not among the crowd that Prime Minister Mahathir bin Mohamad had intended when he launched a national Internet awareness program last year.

Frustrated by a near total news blackout in local newspapers, Malaysians are turning in increasing numbers to the Internet for news about Anwar Ibrahim, the country's former deputy prime minister who was dismissed last week by Mr. Mahathir for what he calls Mr. Anwar's poor character.

Since Mr. Anwar's ouster, thousands of Malaysians have logged on to Web pages and chat groups dedicated to the topic, such as Anwar.com.my, a site set up by his supporters, and a mirror site located outside of the country: www.anwar.cjb.net.

"Now that we have Internet we can read about five newspapers a day — foreign and local," said an engineer in his 30s who was among several thousand people Wednesday at what has become a nightly gathering at the deposed deputy prime minister's home. "We get both sides of the story."

One of the sites had recorded more than 100,000 visitors by Wednesday night.

Internet usage in Malaysia is still relatively limited. There are about 500,000 Internet accounts in the country out of a total population of 22 million.

But the increasing reliance on the Internet for news and information highlights a problem faced by Malaysia and other authoritarian governments around the region. The country's leaders want to promote Internet literacy in order to move into the information technology business, but they also want to retain tight controls on local newspapers and television stations.

Some countries, like Singapore and China, monitor Internet content and filter out sites that contain any material they deem harmful. Mr. Mahathir, who is said to be an avid Internet user, has in the past rejected such measures, saying they are both impractical and not totally effective.

But the ongoing dispute between Mr. Mahathir and Mr. Anwar may push the government to seek tighter controls over the Internet.

Mr. Anwar's speeches are drawing increasing numbers of people, many of whom have organized themselves over the Internet.

"I got fed up with the news in the papers," said a bank employee at Wednesday night's speech. "And then I received an e-mail from somebody who came here a few nights ago and described what he saw. I'm going to tell everyone to come here tomorrow."

There is already talk among Internet users here that Anwar.com.my has been blocked by the government. "Last week I could get access to the site but since last Saturday I haven't been able to get it," said an employee of one of the country's Internet service providers. "Maybe they've banned it."

Officials at the government-owned company that carries the site on its server — and who thus have the power to pull the plug on the site — could not be reached for comment.

Last month, the government arrested three people accused of Internet "rumor-mongering." They were accused of causing panic about riots in Kuala Lumpur that never happened.

The three suspects, who were detained under the country's Internal Security Act, were found after investigators requested that the government-owned Internet provider, Mimos Bhd. — the same company that hosts Anwar.com.my — provide help tracing the e-mail messages back to their source.

People attending Wednesday night's speech said they were frustrated by the minimal coverage the Malaysian papers were giving to Mr. Anwar. "A bit unfair to say the least," said Syed, a 31-year-old engineer from Kuala Lumpur.

Mr. Anwar has issued calls for reform and more press freedom to the thousands of nightly visitors to the streets surrounding his residence.

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