KUALA LUMPUR: Putrajaya is prepared to consider reviewing existing laws to allow for greater media freedom in line with Malaysia’s growing maturity, says Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.
The Prime Minister said that while freedom of expression should be supported, it must be balanced with safeguards to prevent defamation, extreme provocation and racial sensitivities.
“I agree that we should give freedom because the country is maturing.
"Now that the country is independent and free, we must give space… the country must progress with the passage of time.
“We must give a more open space, people can criticise, can give their views, but there must also be a space where the confusion or the excesses are also corrected.” he said during the Temu Anwar programme at Tunku Abdul Rahman University of Management and Technology (TAR UMT) on Wednesday (Feb 4).
Anwar said that further discussions will be held with Communications Minister Datuk Fahmi Fadzil to study proposals for reviewing relevant laws, in part to strengthen the role of the Malaysian Media Council.
