Pemuda Sosialis condemns the new regulatory requirement by the Malaysia Communications & Multimedia Commission (MCMC) that requires social media and internet messaging services to apply for a licence in an attempt to combat increasing cyber offences.
We would like to ask the minister: how will this regulation help to combat cyber crimes more effectively?
Currently, our authorities already have access to our phone number registration, banks and internet service provider (ISP), which should be adequate to crack down on scams, online fraud and cyberbullying. We also have the Personal Data Protection Act (PDPA) which aims to avoid the misuse of individuals’ data by regulating who processes or has control over it.
On the contrary, the existing Communications and Multimedia Act (Act 588) is a vague and broad legislation that gives the government boundless power to control and monitor our online landscape, gradually eroding our freedom of expression. Historically, the government has also shown itself to use regressive laws like the Sedition Act (1948) and censorship through the Printing Presses Act to silence opposition.
Malaysia’s Fourth Estate lacks protection to ensure the freedom of expression without fear of persecution. For example, the digital news platform Malaysiakini was liable for “contempt of court” due to readers’ comments that contested the court’s decision, leading the Attorney-General’s Chambers to seek a hefty RM500,000 fine for the charge in February 2021. Even today, the MADANI government is still deploying cyber troopers to sway public perception in their favour.
On the surface, the new regulatory requirement intends to persecute cybercriminals, but its effectiveness is still up for debate. On a broader scale, it will cost us our freedom of expression. It is a potential tool for censorship, giving the government the power to revoke digital platforms’ licences to silence dissent or opposing views.
Cybercrimes such as cyberbullying, cyberstalking, and fraud can be tackled by amending existing laws instead of enacting a blanket regulation that gives the government more power to regulate our online landscape.
We believe that this regulation can and will be misused for political censorship through threats to revoke licence if sites do not comply with orders to silence discontent or identify dissidents. This regulation also creates a bad precedent to further erode our freedom of expression.
Pemuda Sosialis calls for MCMC to revoke this regulation. The time is ripe for an independent body to set our cyber laws to avoid power conflicts in the legislative process.
Stop taking away our voice.
Stop taking away our rights.
Pemuda Sosialis.