Control Versus Censorship

By Chandra Devi

* ONE of the bill of guarantees under the Multimedia Super Corridor (MSC) initiative was that the Malaysian Government will not pursue Internet censorship. And it has kept to its promise to date.

But its no-censorship stance does not necessarily allow anyone to just put anything on the Internet. We have seen certain cyber incidence over the years that had pushed the Government to take a serious look at controlling the Net content, although not an all- together censorship.

Whatever is being said about the lost of civil liberties, free expression, access to information and privacy with the regulation of the Net by the Government, an open communication medium such as the Internet does need some control especially in a multi-racial society such as ours.

But let’s be thankful that we don’t have Net censorship which, according to a new survey undertaken by Open Net Initiative, is widespread and on the rise in many parts of the world especially in Asia, the Middle East and North Africa. Of the 41 countries surveyed, it showed that 25 countries had evidence of filtering or blocking political and social content.

Based on the survey, Malaysia alongside Afghanistan, Egypt, Iraq, Israel, Nepal, Russia, Venezuela and Zimbawe fell under the group of countries where Internet filtering might be expected but were found not to filter.

Countries which carry out the broadest range of filtering included Myanmar, Iran, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Tunisia, the United Arab Emirates and Yemen.

The survey also found that the techniques used in filtering have evolved with the growing complexity of the Web. Instead of blocking Web pages, certain governments have blocked applications such as YouTube, Skype and Google Maps which they feel does more damage to the cultural fabric.

While the technology brings new opportunities, it will also present various challenges for governments. With the maturity of the Net, we will continue to see Governments everywhere grappling to fight its influence.

The technology has become so pervasive that banning content will not solve the problems brought on by it. A better stance will be to look at alternative measures that can prevent misuse of the Net and to take control.

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