blogs and the laws

Keeping online journals that detailed their experiences combined with their personal introspective and eyewitness accounts in these blogs drew a number of readers. That's the idea of blogs.

Looking at the floor of the Malaysian blogs, It's a scene of life depicting from the society. You'll find a variety of contents and styles. From rigid to indulgent and fame has posted a major trend.

Be it absurd, begrime, virulent, indignity or playfulness, nothing wrongs with them all except the boundary.

The boundary of "Reporters without boundary" which is in some manner still arguably dim in Malaysia. Certainly it's dimensional. For example, the sensitiveness of racial issue will post a big menace. And don't forget, Malaysia is an Islamic country!

"Malaysia is an illiberal democracy. We have freedom of speech, but no freedom after speech. We have freedom of movement, but no freedom of assembly. We have a plethora of publications, but no press freedom," said Steven Gan, co-founder and editor-in-chief of Malaysian on-line news distributor Malayskini.com. Gan received the 2001 IPI Free Media Pioneer Award at the IPI World Congress in India in January 2001. [source www.freemedia.at]

Arguably is the fingered instance of tracing IP addresses for Police, a fright of the threat? Perhaps Sec 53 & 54 of the Evidence Act is a part of the answers.

Further more the Sec 3(3) of the Communications and Multimedia Act 1998 which reads "Nothing in this Act shall be construed as permitting the censorship of the Internet" would inevitably be nullified by the existing legislation, including the ISA, the Sedition Act, the Societies Act and the Printing Presses and Publications Act.

There had been a case of 4 people being arrested and prosecuted by the Home Minister for spreading rumors of disturbances in KL on the Internet in August 1998.

The recent formation of blogsmalaysia.com is quite uncertain under the Multimedia Act. Otherwise it would be cautioned under Sec 41 of the Societies Act.

In a nutshell, Malaysia’s cyberlaw has stated prominently that the Online environment is not a legal vacuum. In general, if something is illegal "off-line", it will also be illegal "on-line". In this matter, the relevant existing laws apply.

Unless you dare to take a challenge to stay as anonymous by proxies. Otherwise a self regulatory principle is the system to blog wisely.