Drop Finas action against Al Jazeera if committed to press freedom, Saifuddin told

Following the government’s vow to uphold media freedom, Communications and Multimedia Minister Saifuddin Abdullah has been asked to honour his pledge by not using the National Film Development Corporation (Finas) Act 1981 to penalise Al Jazeera.

In a joint statement today, the Freedom Film Network (FFN) and Centre for Independent Journalism (CIJ) expressed concern that applying the law on the international broadcaster would create a negative precedent.

“News production companies such as Al Jazeera should not fall under the purview of the Finas Act if they are already accredited as media by the Information Department (Jabatan Penerangan).

“It is also noteworthy that any decision on the case of the Al Jazeera’s ‘Locked Up In Malaysia’s Lockdown’ documentary will act as a precedent and has the potential for misuse as it could be used arbitrarily on any production, including those screened online, as long as it is deemed as questioning or being critical of the state,” they said, adding that such action would cause fear among filmmakers and deter international film companies from investing in Malaysia.

“The communications and multimedia minister must immediately uphold his pledge to amend the Finas Act to protect freedom of expression and media freedom,” they said.

FFN and CIJ further advised the Perikatan Nasional against using the Finas license as a form of “control and censorship”, which runs contrary to the reason the Act was created.

They pointed out recent comments made by Finas chairperson Zakaria Abdul Hamid that licenses were needed to ensure video recordings did not “incite unrest or cause a public nuisance”.

“We appeal to Finas to stay true to its role of “uplifting, nurturing and facilitating” the development of the Malaysian film industry, as stated in Section 6(1) of the Finas Act, and not function against the interest of filmmakers. If Finas enforces regulations under the law to censor and penalise filmmakers, it will go against its own objective and purpose.

“It is imperative that Finas not allow itself to be used as a tool by the current regime to silence dissent and target media companies like Al Jazeera simply because their documentary places the state in an unfavourable light,” they said.

Following the intense backlash to his explanation of the Finas licensing rules, Saifuddin explained earlier today that the Finas Act would be amended to bring it up to the date with the times.

Offering to dialogue with the minister, FFN and CIJ proposed two changes to the 39-year-old law.

1) Clearly define the licensing jurisdiction of the Act, especially the term “film production”, to prevent the law from being used arbitrarily based on the intentions of the government of the day;

2) Remove the requirement for companies to have a minimum of RM50,000 in paid-up capital to qualify for a license as this deters young and independent filmmakers.

The joint statement was endorsed by 17 organisations including the Malaysian Documentary Association, Komuniti Filem Titiwangsa, Instant Cafe Theatre Company, Geramm, Pusat Komas and Global Bersih.

Nine individuals including filmmakers Nadira Ilana, Yow Chong Lee, Amir Muhammad and Susan Lankester and Iskander Azizudin also endorsed it.

The Finas Act became a matter of public debate after Saifuddin said his ministry was investigating if Al Jazeera had obtained a Finas license before producing its contentious documentary alleging Malaysian authorities had mistreated undocumented migrants during the movement control order period.

Finas later confirmed that the documentary was unlicensed, prompting Al Jazeera to state that its “101 East” current affairs show, under which the documentary was aired, did not require a license under Finas rules.

Source: Malaysiakini