馬來西亞，限制新聞自由的民主選舉?
報道 2013年05月10日
Bazuki Muhammad/Reuters
周三，吉隆坡郊外一座體育場內抗議周日大選結果的集會。
香港——美國總統競選連任時擁有諸多先天優勢。企業和其他利益團體大多會為了繼續得到領導層的青睞而資助他們的活動。而且，總統還坐擁白宮這個天字第一號講壇。如果再有個健康的經濟狀況，基本就算是戰無不勝的組合了。
在世界另一頭的馬來西亞，情況也跟美國差不多，只不過，那裡的領導層享有的優勢比這還要明顯，幫助他們在上周日贏得了大選勝利：乘着經濟繁榮的東 風，馬來西亞去年的增長率超過了5%，而政府掌控着經濟命脈，還對影響力最大的一些媒體機構具有有形的影響力，並且願意對不聽話的那些媒體採取行動。
周日投票前的準備期，出現了大量的指責，稱反對派藉以表達意見的一些網站遭到了網絡攻擊。根據人權觀察組織(Human Rights Watch)的說法，選舉前的兩周，馬來西亞境內的讀者要麼登不上批評政府的“當今大馬新聞網”(Malaysiakini)，要麼就發現瀏覽的速度嚴重變慢。
人權觀察組織還表示，另有至少三個網站——大馬自由電台(Radio Free Malaysia)、沙撈越自由電台(Radio Free Sarawak)和沙撈越報道(Sarawak Report)——在選舉前近一周的時間裡似乎遭遇了網絡攻擊，導致流量過大，瀏覽困難。
沒有確鑿證據表明政府或其支持者主導了這些干擾活動，但其時機和目標難免讓人產生疑問。人權觀察組織表示，沙撈越自由電台和沙撈越報道“經常報道政府腐敗，並批評影響農村居民的官方政策”。該組織還稱，為了保障選舉自由，政府有義務防止此類攻擊。
周日的大選雖然使國民陣線(National Front)聯盟得以繼續掌權，但卻削弱了它在議會中的多數地位。根據我同事喬·科克蘭(Joe Cochrane)的報道，從那時起，反對派領袖安瓦爾·易卜拉欣(Anwar Ibrahim)一直聲稱選舉當中存在欺詐，他的聯盟將對部分選舉的結果提出質疑。
然而，馬來西亞當局一直在打壓提出這類問題的反對派成員。據《布里斯班時報》(Brisbane Times)報道，警方本周逮捕了兩名博客作者，其中一人曾在Twitter上留言稱，警方在一些受到質疑的選區內保護幽靈選民。
“我們將繼續監視社交媒體，進行不懈努力，直到在網上散布種族主義帖子的人都被捉拿歸案為止，”商業罪案調查組 (Commercial Crime Investigation Department)主任賽義德·伊斯梅爾(Syed Ismail)說，“任何試圖灌輸仇恨和危害公共安全的人都將受到懲罰。”
政府有理由嚴加防範：馬來西亞社交媒體的崛起已被視為國民陣線和現任總理納吉布·拉扎克(Najib Razak)難以繼續掌控國家的主要原因之一。社交媒體使馬來西亞人能夠接觸到政府控制和影響之外的新聞報道。
周四，西方新聞媒體突出報道了周三晚間進行的一次集會，會上有數萬人傾聽反對派領袖安瓦爾指責馬來西亞政府“竊取選舉勝利”。然而，在馬來西亞最具影響力的報紙、被視為一向跟隨政府路線的《新海峽時報》(New Straits Times)的網站上，突出的選舉報道卻是《阿茲敏說，請接受人民的裁決》(Accept the People’s Verdict, Says Azmin)、《白宮祝賀馬來西亞選舉》(White House Congratulates Malaysia on Election)和《呼籲接受選舉結果》(Call to Accept the Election Outcome)。
在世界另一頭的馬來西亞，情況也跟美國差不多，只不過，那裡的領導層享有的優勢比這還要明顯，幫助他們在上周日贏得了大選勝利：乘着經濟繁榮的東 風，馬來西亞去年的增長率超過了5%，而政府掌控着經濟命脈，還對影響力最大的一些媒體機構具有有形的影響力，並且願意對不聽話的那些媒體採取行動。
周日投票前的準備期，出現了大量的指責，稱反對派藉以表達意見的一些網站遭到了網絡攻擊。根據人權觀察組織(Human Rights Watch)的說法，選舉前的兩周，馬來西亞境內的讀者要麼登不上批評政府的“當今大馬新聞網”(Malaysiakini)，要麼就發現瀏覽的速度嚴重變慢。
人權觀察組織還表示，另有至少三個網站——大馬自由電台(Radio Free Malaysia)、沙撈越自由電台(Radio Free Sarawak)和沙撈越報道(Sarawak Report)——在選舉前近一周的時間裡似乎遭遇了網絡攻擊，導致流量過大，瀏覽困難。
沒有確鑿證據表明政府或其支持者主導了這些干擾活動，但其時機和目標難免讓人產生疑問。人權觀察組織表示，沙撈越自由電台和沙撈越報道“經常報道政府腐敗，並批評影響農村居民的官方政策”。該組織還稱，為了保障選舉自由，政府有義務防止此類攻擊。
周日的大選雖然使國民陣線(National Front)聯盟得以繼續掌權，但卻削弱了它在議會中的多數地位。根據我同事喬·科克蘭(Joe Cochrane)的報道，從那時起，反對派領袖安瓦爾·易卜拉欣(Anwar Ibrahim)一直聲稱選舉當中存在欺詐，他的聯盟將對部分選舉的結果提出質疑。
然而，馬來西亞當局一直在打壓提出這類問題的反對派成員。據《布里斯班時報》(Brisbane Times)報道，警方本周逮捕了兩名博客作者，其中一人曾在Twitter上留言稱，警方在一些受到質疑的選區內保護幽靈選民。
“我們將繼續監視社交媒體，進行不懈努力，直到在網上散布種族主義帖子的人都被捉拿歸案為止，”商業罪案調查組 (Commercial Crime Investigation Department)主任賽義德·伊斯梅爾(Syed Ismail)說，“任何試圖灌輸仇恨和危害公共安全的人都將受到懲罰。”
政府有理由嚴加防範：馬來西亞社交媒體的崛起已被視為國民陣線和現任總理納吉布·拉扎克(Najib Razak)難以繼續掌控國家的主要原因之一。社交媒體使馬來西亞人能夠接觸到政府控制和影響之外的新聞報道。
周四，西方新聞媒體突出報道了周三晚間進行的一次集會，會上有數萬人傾聽反對派領袖安瓦爾指責馬來西亞政府“竊取選舉勝利”。然而，在馬來西亞最具影響力的報紙、被視為一向跟隨政府路線的《新海峽時報》(New Straits Times)的網站上，突出的選舉報道卻是《阿茲敏說，請接受人民的裁決》(Accept the People’s Verdict, Says Azmin)、《白宮祝賀馬來西亞選舉》(White House Congratulates Malaysia on Election)和《呼籲接受選舉結果》(Call to Accept the Election Outcome)。
翻譯：林蒙克、黃錚
In Malaysia’s Election, a Free Press Was Elusive
May 10, 2013
Bazuki Muhammad/Reuters
Demonstrators attended a rally in protest of Sunday's election result at a stadium outside Kuala Lumpur on Wednesday.
HONG KONG — American presidents have built-in advantages when running
for re-election. Corporations and other interest groups tend to give
financially to their cause to stay in the good graces of the leadership.
The president enjoys the bully pulpit that comes with being in the
White House. Throw a healthy economy into the mix, and it’s an almost
unbeatable combination.
Some of the same could be said halfway around the world in Malaysia, except the leadership there enjoys even more pronounced advantages that helped propel it to victory Sunday: control over an economy that is riding a wave of economic prosperity with a growth rate of over 5 percent last year, the government’s perceived influence over some of the most influential media outlets — and a willingness to act against those that don’t fall into line.
In the run-up to Sunday’s voting, there were numerous allegations
that Web sites giving voice to the opposition were the victim of
cyberattacks. According to the group Human Rights Watch, one online site that is critical of the government, Malaysiakini,
could not be accessed from within Malaysia in the two weeks leading to
the elections, or readers experienced significant slowdowns while
accessing the site.
The group also said that at least three other sites — Radio Free Malaysia, Radio Free Sarawak and Sarawak Report — experienced what appeared to have been cyberattacks in which the sites were overwhelmed with traffic, curtailing access for nearly a week before the election.
There is no conclusive evidence that the government or its supporters were behind such disruptions, but the timing and targets naturally raise questions. As Human Rights Watch noted, Radio Free Sarawak and the Sarawak Report “frequently report on government corruption and criticize government policies affecting rural residents.” The group said the government was obligated to prevent such attacks from happening to assure free elections.
While Sunday’s election kept the governing National Front coalition in power, it was left with a weakened majority in Parliament. Since then, the opposition leader, Anwar Ibrahim, has said the elections were marred by fraud and that his coalition would challenge the results of some races, my colleague Joe Cochrane reports.
But the Malaysian authorities have been cracking down on members of the opposition who are raising such issues. As the Brisbane Times reports, the police this week arrested two bloggers, one of whom tweeted a claim that the police were protecting phantom voters in contested election districts.
“We will continue monitoring social media and we will not rest until those who circulate racial postings online are detained,” said Syed Ismail, the director of the Commercial Crime Investigation Department. “Anyone who tries to instill hate and compromise public safety will face the music.”
The government has reason to be defensive: the rise of social media in Malaysia was viewed as one of the primary reasons why the National Front and the incumbent prime minister, Najib Razak, have struggled to retain control over the country. The social media have allowed Malaysians access to news reporting outside government control and influence.
On Thursday, Western news outlets highlighted reports about a Wednesday night rally that drew tens of thousands to hear Mr. Anwar, the opposition leader, accuse the Malaysian government of having “stolen the election.” But on the Web site of the New Straits Times, Malaysia’s most influential newspaper and one viewed as regularly toeing the government line, the election stories that were highlighted were “Accept the People’s Verdict, Says Azmin,” “White House Congratulates Malaysia on Election” and “Call to Accept the Election Outcome.”
Some of the same could be said halfway around the world in Malaysia, except the leadership there enjoys even more pronounced advantages that helped propel it to victory Sunday: control over an economy that is riding a wave of economic prosperity with a growth rate of over 5 percent last year, the government’s perceived influence over some of the most influential media outlets — and a willingness to act against those that don’t fall into line.
The group also said that at least three other sites — Radio Free Malaysia, Radio Free Sarawak and Sarawak Report — experienced what appeared to have been cyberattacks in which the sites were overwhelmed with traffic, curtailing access for nearly a week before the election.
There is no conclusive evidence that the government or its supporters were behind such disruptions, but the timing and targets naturally raise questions. As Human Rights Watch noted, Radio Free Sarawak and the Sarawak Report “frequently report on government corruption and criticize government policies affecting rural residents.” The group said the government was obligated to prevent such attacks from happening to assure free elections.
While Sunday’s election kept the governing National Front coalition in power, it was left with a weakened majority in Parliament. Since then, the opposition leader, Anwar Ibrahim, has said the elections were marred by fraud and that his coalition would challenge the results of some races, my colleague Joe Cochrane reports.
But the Malaysian authorities have been cracking down on members of the opposition who are raising such issues. As the Brisbane Times reports, the police this week arrested two bloggers, one of whom tweeted a claim that the police were protecting phantom voters in contested election districts.
“We will continue monitoring social media and we will not rest until those who circulate racial postings online are detained,” said Syed Ismail, the director of the Commercial Crime Investigation Department. “Anyone who tries to instill hate and compromise public safety will face the music.”
The government has reason to be defensive: the rise of social media in Malaysia was viewed as one of the primary reasons why the National Front and the incumbent prime minister, Najib Razak, have struggled to retain control over the country. The social media have allowed Malaysians access to news reporting outside government control and influence.
On Thursday, Western news outlets highlighted reports about a Wednesday night rally that drew tens of thousands to hear Mr. Anwar, the opposition leader, accuse the Malaysian government of having “stolen the election.” But on the Web site of the New Straits Times, Malaysia’s most influential newspaper and one viewed as regularly toeing the government line, the election stories that were highlighted were “Accept the People’s Verdict, Says Azmin,” “White House Congratulates Malaysia on Election” and “Call to Accept the Election Outcome.”
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