“If we can look at the government and the laws, by all means do that, study the law – the so called restrictive laws – and make representations to the relevant minister and the government. But what I want to talk to you today is can the press today start looking at itself?”
Zaid Ibrahim, de facto law minister, on why the laws should not be blamed for the press’ irresponsibility.

I shall stop short of saying “I told you so”, but let me just say I wasn’t entirely surprised by Zaid Ibrahim’s stand on the issue of press freedom.

His idea of a responsible free press is a whim trapped in a vacuum devoid of social context. If he was arguing this in an undergraduate paper presentation somewhere far, far away from Malaysia, I’d say it’s fairly acceptable.

But for a cabinet minister, who you’d expect to have a better grasp on the issues and baggage at hand, Zaid Ibrahim’s washing of hands off a shackled press’ dirty underworld means he’s plain irresponsible.

The larger part of his 10 minute speech were rants against the press’ inability to want press freedom badly enough, their culture of feudal kowtowing, and their blaming “so-called restrictive laws” for their every fault. The rest of it were mostly questions directed to the audience (made up mostly of journos) asking them why they can’t perform more responsibly.

Not one word was said about political ownership of the press, not one murmur against deliberate marginalising of opposition voices, and not one whisper on the numerous cases of the various laws being used to clamp down on the press.

In the end, it was all about “self-liberating” oneself not from but within the shackles of the government Zaid represents.

“I’m not here to endorse anything I’ve not read or considered”, said Zaid in opening his speech. Obviously, he hasn’t read a lot, or considered anything more than his political career, ie. promotion, in his own words.

The very fact that our mainstream press are less-inclined when it comes to defending altruistic civil freedoms remains so not because it is intrinsically irresponsible, but more because Zaid’s government is actively ordering it to act so, lest we forget the phone calls editors get once in a while.

And the press acts as if they are intrinsically irresponsible to the people (fourth estate, yadayadayada) because they are responsible to their paychecks, their licenses, and ultimately, their negotiated freedom.

It’s sad, and distressingly so, when someone like Zaid in his position would choose to ignore the very basic and underlying factors when it comes to charting a road map for a more democratic Malaysia. Will he go back to the cabinet and tell them “the truth, of what is right and wrong”, and defend the so called basic principles he supposedly shares with us?

Humbly,
Konsyenz (A Voice Within)