By Abdullah Buqis KUCHING MALAYSIA, Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim stressed Monday that press freedom is an essential key to mature democracy.
“Freedom of the press will advance the democratic process and will be able to encourage the growth of great works in various fields such as literature, culture and politics,” Ibrahim said in his keynote speech during his country’s celebration of National Journalists’ Day.
The premier added however, “this freedom must have its limits, otherwise it will serve as incitement and division for society and could harm morality and hinder development.” Ibrahim also underlined that the world of journalism plays a very important role in the history of the development of countries’ civilization, and that “journalists have an important role in covering humanity’s struggle, so their job cannot be defeated by anything, including physical development, technological progress, and even the development of technology in the form of artificial intelligence.” The premier defended
his government’s “firm action” against inflammatory speech, a move that indirectly contributed to Malaysia’s downgrade in the annual World Press Freedom Index issued by Reporters Without Borders.
Ibrahim said in this context, “If we allow freedom of racism, fascism, or religious fanaticism in this country, we will expect friction, racial conflicts, and religious discord.” For his part, Director of the Malaysian Press Institute, Munir Anam, said in a statement to KUNA that the Malaysian media adopts “social responsibility” as its main principle, which is a theory that takes into account the laws of the state, especially those related directly or indirectly to the press and media, such as the laws of defamation, licensing, printing, and possession of documents, including confidentiality and instigation.
Source: Kuwait News Agency