DATUK Dr Chamil Wariya sits calmly in a quiet media room at the Malaysian Press Institute (MPI) building in Kuala Lumpur.
But his demeanour belies the intense mission he is on.
Before him are stacks of papers on a table waiting to be signed. As the institute’s chief executive officer, Chamil has been busy with all things related to the media industry’s development; chairing and attending meeting after meeting are dotted on his hefty schedule.
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The said meetings are part of his ongoing endeavour, alongside several media bigwigs and veterans, to push for the formation of Malaysia’s media council this year.
And as the council’s pro tem committee member, Chamil is dead serious about it.
“We need to have the council set up this year. The modernisation of the industry is taking place rapidly and a suitable body to watch over ethics, conduct, and media independence is sorely needed,” says Chamil.
The mission is a struggle spanning more than four decades.
In 1974, then-prime minister Tun Abdul Razak Hussein had called for a press “watchdog panel” to ensure that the “path of the press is in line with national interests” while assuring that press freedom would not be curtailed by the proposed panel.
Soon after, a preparatory committee was formed by the industry’s top editors. They were given three months to submit a report detailing recommendations on the setting up of the panel.
“Unfortunately, there was no action on the recommendations submitted,” according to excerpts from the book MPI’s Journey (which is scheduled to be launched next month).
Will this be the year?
After Abdul Razak died in 1976, news about the press watchdog panel went quiet.
What follows later is a series of meetings, inaction, and dormancy whenever a proposal to form the council is raised, much to the frustration of journalists nationwide.
Nevertheless, there is light at the end of the tunnel; the Malaysian Media Council Bill is finally in the works.
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It is currently being drafted by the council’s pro tem committee and the Communications and Digital Ministry.
Its Minister Fahmi Fadzil has said the Bill is expected to be tabled either during the parliamentary sitting in October or the first sitting next year, from February to March.
It will not be tabled during this year’s second parliamentary sitting which is scheduled to end by June 15.
When asked, Chamil says it should be ready for tabling by year-end.
“Yes, we can make it. I am confident that this unity government, spearheaded by Pakatan Harapan, is committed to the media council’s formation.
“They will make it a reality. Otherwise, it will be another empty promise. As of now, the process to form the council has already begun.”
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In 2018, the proposal to form the council was rejuvenated after Pakatan won the general election but was put on hold following the sudden change of government in 2020.
Gerakan Media Merdeka, more familiarly known as Geramm, is a movement promoting media freedom that has representatives on the council’s pro tem committee. A representative says the Bill is in its final phase of drafting.
“We are ironing out the details to ensure the council will be able to pave the way for a self-regulatory media in the country.”
Independent by law
The media council needs to be a self-regulatory body overseeing the conduct of the country’s fourth estate as well as being protected by law.
“It should not serve as a foundation or a non-governmental organisation. An Act will provide the council with credibility and standing. Only then, when it is legally binding, will the council have teeth and be recognised by regulatory framework,” Chamil says.
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“We want to be as independent as the Bar Council or the Malaysian Medical Council. The government’s involvement in setting up the media council should only be limited to legislating the Bill,” he says.
Apart from legality, the Act is also an apparatus to ensure the council’s independence similar to the Indian Press Council, which was formed by Parliament but remains self-regulatory.
It is a crucial aspect upheld by editors in the country, underlined when the proposal to form the council was raised again during the National Communication Policy Convention in 1983, according to academicians Dr Mohd Safar Hasim and Prof Datuk Dr Ahmad Murad Merican.
“[This] is to establish a communications policy in Malaysia. The press was not supportive [then]. The main argument then is that many laws in Malaysia restrict the freedom of the press.
“The press did not want the council to be another form of control. So the idea was shot down once again,” the experts state in a paper they co-authored titled “The Formation of a Media Council: The Experience of Malaysia” in the Malaysian Journal of Communication in 2002.
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Another suggestion to conceptualise the aspired independence is the idea – by prominent journalism figure, the late Datuk Mazlan Nordin – to appoint a retired High Court judge to lead a team overseeing the council’s operations.
Chamil says currently, the council does not necessarily need a retired judge at its helm.
“It can be any professional who is well-versed in the law and understands the media’s requirement or interests.”
For the media and the people
Ultimately, the media council will seek to cement professionalism, credibility and independence in reporting, apart from reviewing laws restrictive to the industry.
Former Bernama editor-in-chief Datuk Mokhtar Hussain says, at the end of the day, the council aspires to have all things media under its prerogative to elevate journalistic integrity.
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“We can take a leaf from the Indonesian Press Council’s book, which encourages newsmen to take up its [non-compulsory] journalistic competency test to boost their credibility.”
In Indonesia, journalists who pass the test will be certified as competent and awarded a “press card”, similar to a Malaysian journalist’s accreditation card issued by the Information Department.
There are also reports illustrating the level of trust given towards certified competent journalists in Indonesia, with several government agencies preferring to cooperate with those who graduated from the test.
Mokhtar also points out the Malaysian media council can serve as an intermediary between the industry and the people.
“If there is any dispute or complaints involving alleged inaccurate reports, the council will look into the case for any possible misconduct. It can hold a tribunal to hear testimonies from the affected parties.
“If the said media is found to be erroneous in publishing the report, it will be ordered to issue a formal apology to the aggrieved party.”
The council is also outlining a charter of ethics to be adhered to by all media organisations in the country.
Another hurdle?
Despite the ongoing fervour to establish the council, the book MPI’s Journey details a conundrum over the funding it requires.
As the setting up of the council will be done through Parliament and it will require approvals from the Finance Ministry and Home Ministry as well as the Attorney General’s Chambers, the pro tem committee argues that the government bears responsibility to provide one-off initial funding.
“[However] during discussions with the Deputy Communications and Digital Minister and officials from the Legal Division and the Policy Division, funding became a contentious issue.
“Some of the ministry’s officers hold a differing view.
“They suggest that since the council aims to function as an independent body that is not tied to the government or any ministry for regulatory purposes, it should be fully funded by the Malaysian news and journalism industry or through contributions from various parties supporting media freedom in this country.”
The pro tem committee says the seed grant will be the only form of monetary assistance from the government, following the council’s mission to remain self-regulatory.
A new hope
Newsmen, both those who have left the field and those who are still working in it, are hoping for a guarantee that the media council will be formally established this year in conjunction with National Journalists Day (or, going by its Malay abbreviation, Hawana) tomorrow, May 29.
Mokhtar says any improvement to the council or the Act can be done once the council is formed: “It is time. We can make improvements along the way.”
And for the first time, most media companies in the country are in favour of forming the council, Geramm says.
“For the first time, the council’s formation is receiving support from almost all media companies nationwide.”
Chamil wishes for a piece of positive news on the council to be announced during Hawana.
“I hope there will be good news for us. We have been working towards this for so long.
“Regardless of the challenges, let’s set it up this year and work on improving the council while we are on the job. As journalists, we are quite exceptional at making continuous change.”
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