8 Things About George Soros' Open Society Foundations (OSF) & How It Affects Malaysia

A leaked document which was highlighted by DC Leaks, a website that gained fame for publishing hacked emails of US presidential candidate Hillary Clinton, has been making its round on social media recently.

Titled 'Malaysia Programme – Portfolio Review Outcome Summary', the document is believed to be minutes of a meeting that took place in June 2015 with representatives from the Open Society Foundations (OSF) and independent research house Merdeka Center executive director Ibrahim Suffian, amongst others.

Following this, there have been speculations that this is just one of the signs that foreign powers are meddling with Malaysian affairs.

A controversial figure, George Soros is best known for his namesake Soros Fund Management firm, which originally founded the OSF network in 1984 to help countries transition from communism.

The charity now funds projects aimed at democracy building across the globe, although it has also provided financial support to controversial projects.

It's interesting to note that, two branches of Soros' charity network — the Open Society Foundations (OSF) and the Open Society Institute (OSI) — has been banned in Russia in December 2015 because the country deems them to be "security threats".

Soros has always been seen as the mastermind behind the 1997-98 Asian financial crisis which is said to have ruined Malaysia's economy after the country enjoyed such high growth rates in the mid-90s.

Former Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad was very vocal about Soros, accusing him of playing a role in causing the economic crisis, though he later changed his views of Soros in 2006.

Meanwhile, Ministers in the Prime Minister’s Department Datuk Seri Dr Wee Ka Siong also spoke about Soros and linked him to the crisis recently.

"Soros is famous for his role in the Asian financial crisis in 1998. Knowing his background, we can conclude he is not one who comes with good intentions," he was quoted as saying by The Star Online.

According to the leaked document, OSF's 'Malaysia Programme' is working towards supporting free and fair elections in Malaysia.

One of the most successful initiatives was making "grants" or providing funds to civil society groups working for a common cause. This reportedly includes Bersih, C4 Malaysia, Pusat Kesedaran Komuniti (Empower), Islamic Renaissance Front, Merdeka Centre for Opinion Research, Penang Institute, Suara Rakyat Malaysia (Suaram), Citizen Journalists Malaysia (Sabah) and the Committee For Free Elections (Comfrel).

Critics have claimed that the contents of the leaked documents suggest that Soros has an ulterior motive as OSF outlines its efforts to influence Malaysian politics.

They are worried that external parties are interfering in the country's political scene and said that the fundings are provided to influence the outcome of the next general election.

The following is the statement released by OSF on 2 November refuting all allegations that they are rigging the next general elections in Malaysia: "Claims that the Open Society Foundations funded attempts to overthrow the government in Malaysia are entirely false."

"The Open Society Foundations support justice, accountability and democratic practice around the world and in Malaysia our grant-making to civil society includes efforts to promote public health, foster fair migration policies and encourage the civic and political participation of all Malaysian citizens."

OSF revealed that its total funding in Malaysia averaged around USD700,000 (RM2.93 million) annually and stressed that all of its activities are non-partisan.

Bersih 2.0 chairperson Maria Chin Abdullah told Free Malaysia Today that the electoral watchdog has not received any form of funding from OSF ever since they received a one-time funding between 2010 and 2011, amounting to about RM70,000 - an amount which only made up 11% of their income at the time. Since 2011, Bersih has been relying on public donations.

According to Malay Mail Online, the police are investigating Malaysiakini under Section 124C of the Penal Code for allegedly trying to undermine parliamentary democracy because they received funds from George Soros’ Open Society Foundations (OSF).

It was reported that Malaysiakini admitted that it received a grant from OSF to produce the 'Realiti Sarawak' and 'Sekilas Bumi Kenyalang' programmes, adding that it only constituted a small portion of its revenue.

This was revealed yesterday, 3 November, after anti-Bersih group Red Shirts' leader Datuk Jamal Yunos brought some 50 members from the group to demand an explanation on Malaysiakini's funding from OSF.