The stunning setback to Malaysia's ruling coalition in the
country's recent national elections underscores the people's demand
for political and democratic reforms, and the need for greater
openness in the Southeast Asian country.

It was the failure of Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi to
deliver on promises for good governance, accountability, and an end
to corruption that tarnished his administration and severely
damaged his coalition; and it was the lack of openness, the absence
of free expression and press freedom, and the stifling of
independent media in Malaysia that never really gave those promises
any chance to be credible or legitimate from the very start.

Ironically, it was Abdullah's authoritarian predecessor, Mahathir
Mohamad, who said it best: "The problem is we (the ruling
coalition) have become so arrogant. We suppress any opinion that we
do not like and begin to believe in our own reports, which are not
actually consistent with what is happening in the country."

Although the incumbent government was returned to power, its
popular vote was slashed to just over 51 percent, with the
opposition also gaining greater representation in Parliament and
capturing five out of 13 state seats.

The former information minister Zainuddin Maidin, who was among the
major parliamentary casualties in the ruling coalition, had
infamously exhorted the mainstream media not to tell the prime
minister the truth, especially that which is unpalatable to the
ruling government. Had the heavily controlled media been allowed to
serve the truth instead of government propaganda, the ruling
government may have been able to gauge the real sentiments of the
people, address their concerns adequately and be spared the
embarrassing backlash it is facing now.

There were clear signs of growing public dissent in the months
prior to the election. Civil society groups took to the streets to
show their unhappiness with a range of issues that are exacerbated
by the lack of democratic freedoms. Such protests - the events
themselves, their basis, and the subsequent clampdowns - were also
not fairly covered by the traditional mainstream media, increasing
public dissatisfaction at the lack of democratic spaces.

To be sure, the repressive environment, rationalised by supposed
concerns for racial anxieties and potentials for ethnic and
religious riots, is a legacy of Mahathir more than anybody else's,
but it was the ruling coalition's revelling and contentment in the
face of that legacy that was their collective undoing. The
Malaysian leaders' unwillingness to accept criticism, engage in
debate, encourage genuine civil participation, and indeed foster
greater tolerance through greater openness, is what has long
rendered Malaysia's political foundations unstable and in desperate
need of reform.

Hopefully, the message of the last elections is loud and clear and
hopefully, the opportunity for reform will now be exploited to the
fullest.

As has been demonstrated, avoiding and hiding the truth is a
disservice not only to the public but also the government. SEAPA
hopes that Malaysia's new elected leaders, at both state and
federal levels, will move for an enabling environment for free
expression, and calls on civil society to continue engaging with
the authorities to abolish restrictive laws such as the Printing
Presses and Publications Act, the Official Secrets Act and the
Sedition Act.

Malaysians want more democracy, more openness, more space for open
debate, press freedom, and free expression. Without these, any
promises of good governance and reform will ring hollow and
incredible.

Issued by:
Roby Alampay
Executive Director

ABOUT SEAPA
The Southeast Asian Press Alliance (SEAPA) is a coalition of press
freedom advocacy groups from Indonesia, the Philippines and
Thailand. Established in November 1998, the network aims to unite
independent journalists and press-related organisations in the
region into a force for the protection and promotion of press
freedom and free expression in Southeast Asia. SEAPA is composed of
the Alliance of Independent Journalists (Indonesia), the
Jakarta-based Institute for the Study of the Free Flow of
Information (ISAI), the Manila-based Center for Media Freedom and
Responsibility, the Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism,
and the Thai Journalists Association.

Contact us at: [email protected], or call (662) 243 5579.