Global Media Watchdog Finds Malaysia Has The Biggest Fall In Press Freedom Ranking In 2021
Malaysia ranked the second highest among ASEAN countries in the freedom of press index.
By Yap Wan Xiang — 21 Apr 2021, 05:50 PM
Global media watchdog Reporters Without Borders (RSF) has ranked Malaysia in the 119th spot out of 180 countries in its 2021 World Press Freedom Index
According to US Congress-funded broadcaster VOA, Malaysia is said to have the "biggest decline" on the index, while Deutsche Presse-Agentur reported that the country "took the biggest hit".
Despite that, RSF noted that 73% of the 180 countries have completely and partially blocked the media to some degree during the COVID-19 pandemic.
"The Index data reflect a dramatic deterioration in people's access to information and an increase in obstacles to news coverage," wrote the watchdog.
"The coronavirus pandemic has been used as grounds to block journalists' access to information sources and reporting in the field."
Elaborating on the freedom of the press in Malaysia, RSF contended that several draconian laws in the country have yet to be repealed
It contended that laws such as the Sedition Act 1948 and the Official Secrets Act (OSA) 1972 enable authorities to have strict control over the media landscape in the country.
"For the media, the restoration of more authoritarian rule in 2020 has led to prosecutions, police searches, expulsions (of journalists and a whistleblower), and flagrant violations of the confidentiality of journalists' sources," it continued.
"To protect themselves against the government's offensive, many journalists have had to censor themselves."
Malaysiakini reported that the country had the best ranking in 2020 (101 out of 180 countries), while the worst ranking was in 2014 and 2015 (147).
Among ASEAN countries, only Indonesia ranked higher than Malaysia on the index
Below is the ranking of the 10 ASEAN countries on the 2021 World Press Freedom Index:
- No 113 - Indonesia
- No 119 - Malaysia
- No 137 - Thailand
- No 138 - Philippines
- No 140 - Myanmar
- No 144 - Cambodia
- No 154 - Brunei
- No 160 - Singapore
- No 172 - Laos
- No 175 - Vietnam
While explaining Singapore's 'black' status on the index, RSF wrote, "Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong's government is always quick to sue critical journalists, apply pressure to make them unemployable, or even force them to leave the country."
The watchdog also noted that two media groups controlled "all of Singapore's print and broadcast media", one of which is state invested, while the leadership of another company is appointed by the government.
Timor-Leste — a country that gained independence from Indonesia in 2002, but is not an ASEAN member — ranked the highest in the Southeast Asian region at 71.
7 None of the countries in this region had a journalist, citizen journalist, or media assistant killed while on the job in 2021.
Meanwhile, China ranked 177 on the list, only two places ahead of North Korea, while the US ranked at 44.
Norway took the number one ranking, followed by Finland and Sweden.
