KUALA LUMPUR: The Centre for Law and Democracy (CLD) released a Media Law Reform Blueprint to outline issues related to freedom of expression and journalism in the country.
It said insufficient progress had been made to safeguard the press since the Pakatan Harapan’s promise to reform press and media freedom over two years ago.
CLD executive director Toby Mendel said that the government should consider amending Article 10 of the Federal Constitution to align more closely with international guarantees.
“This includes expanding the right to encompass the ability to seek or receive information and ideas, potentially extending this right to apply across borders and through any form of communication.
“Meanwhile, any restrictions on freedom of expression should be subjected to a strict test of necessity to protect national interests recognised under international law,” Mendel said at the launch of the blueprint on Monday (Jan 20).
He also said that regulatory powers under current ministerial control should be placed under independent regulatory bodies as part of the planned Malaysian Media Council (MMC) bill.
“This includes the Printing Presses and Publications Act 1984 and the Communications and Multimedia Commission Act 1998, which are to be placed under an independent body or commissions.
“Radio Televisyen Malaysia (RTM) should also be transformed into an independent public service broadcaster, operating under separate legislation and the governance of an independent board of governors,” he said.
Mendel added that government representatives should be excluded from the council’s board.
He also proposed establishing a special complaint system dedicated to handling concerns regarding media outlets directly instead of involving the courts.
“This would eliminate the need to resort to legal action for any complaints against media outlets or journalists, allowing them to be resolved faster.
“Only after going through this system and a complainant still feels the need for further action should they consider bringing the issue to the courts.
“However, complaints should focus on media outlets themselves instead of the journalist (who wrote the report) as it is the outlet’s published report that caused the harm,” he said.