Press Statement By DAP Secretary-General And MP For Bagan Lim Guan Eng In Kuala Lumpur On 22.3.2018.
BN’s proposed Anti-Fake News Bill will cover up all corruption scandals such as 1MDB, and is a death knell to freedom of speech and press freedom by using imprisonment to threaten independent media outlets, who do not publish news verified by the BN Federal Government. The announcement comes after Deputy Communications and Multimedia Minister Jailani Johari said that any 1MDB-related information which was unverified, including reports by international news organisations The Economist, The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times and MSNBC, would be considered fake news
Jailani arrogantly said that“The general definition of fake news is news confirmed as false by authorities with expertise in the matter.” In other words only the government can determine which is true and false or decide which is fake or not. That the BN Federal government only can decide what is true or false is draconian. This is a clear and unequivocal signal that Malaysia under BN is now lurching into a full-blown dictatorship.
When Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Azalina Othman Said talked about protecting the public from becoming victims of fake news, what about whistleblowers and independent media outlets who fall victim to BN because they fall foul of the Anti-Fake News Bill? Even issuing this statement can land me in trouble with the Anti-Fake News bill, since BN appears to want to “get” me for something as minor as singing and dancing, along with a song mocking the GST in an event attended by children.
Many countries have commenced investigations related to 1MDB, which has been described by US attorney-general Jeff Sessions as “kleptocracy at its worst”. In Singapore a bank has its license cancelled, its officers charged and there has even been a former banker jailed for four and a half years(54 months) for being involved in misappropriation of 1MDB funds. And yet the BN Federal government can dismiss all these news as fake!
The 1MDB scandal once again made global headlines again last month, when the Malaysian government refused to file their claim of ownership over the RM 1 billion super-yacht “Equanimity super-yacht” seized in Bali, even though it is linked to Low Taek Jho. The Malaysian government also refused to claim Swiss francs CHF104 million (RM430 million), seized by the Swiss government’s due to being allegedly misappropriated 1MDB funds. Under the proposed Anti-Fake News Bill, the RM1 billion super-yacht and RM430 million also fake?
LIM GUAN ENG
—- Mandarin Version —
民主行动党秘书长兼峇眼区国会议员林冠英于2018年3月22日，在吉隆坡发表声明：
国阵的反假新闻法案将会涵盖所有的贪污丑闻，例如一马机构丑闻，这是不是言论自由及新闻自由的丧钟？因为它以监禁为刑罚，来威胁那些不刊登国阵联邦政府声明的独立媒体
国阵的反假新闻法案将会涵盖所有的贪污丑闻，例如一马机构丑闻，这是不是言论自由及新闻自由的丧钟？因为它以监禁为刑罚，来威胁那些不刊登国阵联邦政府声明的独立媒体。通讯及多媒体副部长加拉尼近日宣布，任何与一马机构相关的资讯都是未经核实的，包括国际新闻组织包括《经济学人》、《华尓街日报》、《纽约时报》及微软全国广播公司节目(MSNBC)的报道，都将被视为假新闻。
加拉尼自大地说，“假新闻的一般定义是由拥有专才的相关部门确定新闻为假消息”。换句话说，只有政府可以决定什么是真，什么是假。只有国阵联邦政府可以决定什么是真什么是假，这是非常独断的。很明显地，马来西亚正步入国阵的独裁统治。
当首相署部长阿查丽娜奥斯曼说要保护公众，让他们不会成为假新闻的受害者，那些因为反假新闻法案而犯规，成为国阵统治的受害者的吹哨者和独立新闻机构又怎样？就连我现在发这则文告，都有可能让我受假新闻法案影响，既然国阵处心积虑，欲加之罪，就连我出席现场有儿童出席，跟着《GST儿歌神曲》边唱边舞这种小事也有错，被他们用来对付我。
很多国家都针对一马机构展开了调查，这宗丑闻也被美国司法部长塞申斯再度点名大马乃“盗贼统治最恶劣的例子”。在新加坡，一家银行执照被吊销，官员被起诉，甚至一名前银行家因为涉及不法动用一马机构的款额，而被监禁4年半（54个月）。事情发展至此，国阵联邦政府还可以抵赖，说这些都是假新闻！
上个月，一马机构丑闻再一次成为全球头条，当马来西亚政府拒绝入禀，索回在巴厘岛被充公、价值10亿令吉的超级豪华游艇《平静号》，即使它与刘特佐有关。当瑞士政府因一笔款额涉及一马机构，马来西亚政府也拒绝索回被充公的瑞士法郎1亿400万（4亿3000万令吉）。在反假新闻法案下，上述的10亿令吉超级豪华游艇以及4亿3000万令吉的新闻也是假的吗？
林冠英