Sunday, January 21, 2007

freedom of speech...or not?

The days are growing darker. I don't mean to sound like a paranoid nut running around shouting that the end of days is near with a gleam of insanity. But, looking at what's been happening--disastrous floods in Johor, killer winds in Europe, greater future destruction in Iraq, the growing conflict between Iran and the United States , and right in our beloved country--NSTP's defamation suit against Jeff Ooi (famous Malaysian blogger). OK, I think I'll stop now. It's getting too depressing listing those things down. There are two sides of the fence regarding Jeff Ooi's case: one side claims that it's a legitimate case while the other calls it an infringement on freedom of speech. Having read Jeff Ooi's various posts about NST, I wouldn't call them defamatory. Judge them for yourself. He basically called NST a profit-making company and labeled it UMNO-controlled. That's about as 'defamatory' as it gets. Whether Jeff Ooi deserves to be sued or not, however, isn't the heart of the matter. What really matters, down the road, is the consequences of this landmark case. Should he win, the online sphere is relatively safe from the intense censorship that pervades this country. Should he lose, Malaysian bloggers will have to start blogging with hesitant fingers. Complete freedom of speech only leads to anarchy. While most activists clamor for freedom of speech, we need to realize that not everything that can be said, should be said. A hatred-driven rhetoric against any particular race or religious group in this country will definitely create unrest. Should freedom of speech be guaranteed at the expense of national security and peace? The peace we live in may just be a superficial covering on top of a soup boiling with hidden hatred and intense dissatisfaction. But, that thin covering still manages to keep us from slaughtering each other for the sake of a supreme race or religion.

True freedom exists with boundaries. Having said that though, I believe that the freedom of speech in Malaysia is curbed more for power plays, than for a true worry for national security. And this is precisely what worries me about Jeff Ooi's case. If he loses, the ruling people will gain even more power to solidify their position and destroy any voice of opposition, however small. The blogsphere is one of the only realms left in Malaysia that is relatively untouched by censorship. Jeff Ooi's loss however, would signify an invasion of that realm, thus making tight the ruling powers' grip upon the future of this nation. Knowledge is power. Without knowledge, people become nothing more than mindless robots obeying a single voice with no creative thought whatsoever. Jeff Ooi's loss would mean that a source of information (blogs) that is somewhat equal and free from being manipulated by any major ruling party, will be cut off soon. There will be no more space to express views that could possibly destroy the credibility of the ruling powers. There will be no more space to question the things that are being done to this nation. There will be no more space for intellectual growth.

There will be no more truth.

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Written at 1:47 AM