Asia Times: OPINION: Southeast Asia's press under siege



	September 04, 1999	atimes.com

Media/Information Technology

OPINION: Southeast Asia's press under siege
By Kevin McGahan*

Southeast Asia's press is under siege. In the past year, Malaysian editors have been forced to resign, Philippine dailies threatened with financial ruin, and Thai newspaper offices bombed. Oddly, these incidents have occurred in the region's more democratic regimes with fairly sophisticated and well-established media outlets. If Southeast Asia's press continues to succumb to political pressures, further democratization may be in jeopardy and political patronage will continue to undermine economic growth.

Malaysia's prime minister, Mahathir Mohamad, is well noted for his harangues against both the local and foreign press. He routinely argues that the free flow of ideas is central to economic development and journalists are permitted to write anything they choose. But he frequently characterizes any anti-government press coverage as biased and inaccurate. Mahathir once lambasted reports that ''the freedom of expression includes the freedom to tell lies''.

In an effort to maintain his 18-year grip on power, the septuagenarian premier has kept tight control over the press. In July 1998, the editor-in-chief of Utusan Malaysia - one the country's largest dailies - resigned. Mahathir reportedly applied intense political pressure to remove the editor because the paper published articles chiding the government's policies. One week later, the editor of Malaysia's top-selling Berita Harian quit. Again, government critics argued that Mahathir facilitated his removal.

In the Philippines as well, the press has experienced intense political pressure to curb any criticism of the government. Philippine journalists have fiercely focused their attention on President Joseph ''Erap'' Estrada's penchant for crony capitalism. As a result, Estrada has had a highly contentious relationship with the media, particularly English-based newspapers. In March, the president filed a highly publicized 100 million-peso ($2.6 million) lawsuit against The Manila Times - one of the country's most respected English dailies - for running a story that implicated him in a government corruption scandal. After the paper issued a public retraction, the president dropped his suit. In July, a real-estate magnate and crony of former president Fidel Ramos bought the newspaper. On July 23, it ran its last edition under its former management as the new owner vowed to hire his own staff.

The sale of The Manila Times is a serious blow to the Philippine press - one of Southeast Asia's most freewheeling and independent. The out-going editor-in-chief, Malou Mangahas, said that the newspaper's sale was orchestrated by a group ''acting supposedly in the name and on behalf of the [present] administration, to tame a critical press''. Critics suggest that the sale involved Mark Jimenez, an influential presidential adviser who is also fighting criminal extradition to the US.

Nonetheless, the pressure on the president continued as another English newspaper, the Philippine Daily Inquirer, revealed that Estrada was applying financial pressure to silence reporters critical of his administration. Billionaire business tycoon Lucio Tan, one of Estrada's closest associates, then reportedly threatened an advertising boycott against the newspaper.

Like the Philippines, Thailand has been noted for its relatively liberal press. As Thailand moves toward democracy, the media have steadily become more professional and increased their influence. According to a recent UN agency survey, Thailand's print media is one of the few among developing countries to be declared independent.

But in two recent incidents, the press has come under fire - literally. On July 19, several bodyguards assigned to Deputy Prime Minister Trairong Suwannakhiri occupied the offices of the Thai Post daily at gunpoint. Newspaper officials said that the armed men entered their offices to complain about a report which alleged that the Deputy PM had avoided speaking to protesting fishermen because he had been afraid of them. Several days later, the office of the Thai-language daily Khao Sod was blasted with a grenade. The newspaper's editor characterized the bombing as a ''revenge attack'' in response to the publishing of a report critical of the government. Much to his credit, Prime Minister Chuan Leekpai quickly condemned both assaults and launched investigations to hold those responsible for the attacks accountable.

But the Thai government has also lashed out against the foreign journalists. Both Newsweek and Esquire recently published unflattering articles on Thailand's notorious sex industry. In response, infuriated Thai officials proposed to blacklist the authors of the scathing articles and to tighten the government's control over foreign journalists.

These press crackdowns will have far-reaching political consequences. In Malaysia, for example, the press is playing a critical role in preparing the electorate for the upcoming elections. But the country's mainstream publications faithfully toe the government line and refuse to cover the political opposition. Prime Minster Mahathir is the obvious beneficiary.

But the press does more. It is the public's watchdog, investigating government waste, corrupt business practices, and environmental hazards. The government's intimidation of the press has caused journalists to be less aggressive in holding politicians accountable. Given the region's history of money politics and crony capitalism, this trend will have disastrous consequences for economic policy. Governments can all too easily revert to their old corrupt ways, undermining future economic growth. In May of this year, Time (Asia) published a controversial investigative report meticulously documenting the billion-dollar money trail siphoned from state coffers by former Indonesian president Suharto. The article underscored the crucial role the press can play in checking government corruption and in framing a national political debate.

More critically, the government's suppression of the press could provoke significant anti-government sentiment - even political unrest. Through the publication of commentary, letters, and opinion polls, the press provides the public a constructive outlet to express their frustrations. Without a free press, public discontent is more likely to be articulated through protests, strikes, and riots. In the Philippines, for example, democratic activists have used the freedom of the press issue to stage anti-government demonstrations. As Filipinos begin to debate Estrada's proposed constitutional reforms, the president's tactics against the press may galvanize political opposition against his initiatives.

*Kevin McGahan is Lead Southeast Asia Analyst for Marvin Zonis + Associates, Political Risk Consultants.