KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysians are more discerning when filtering news obtained through social media, the Dewan Rakyat was told today.
Hassan Abdul Karim (PH-PKR-Pasir Gudang) said even without the Anti-Fake News Act, government agencies were able take action against fake postings using other laws and avenues, even those that were not criminal in nature.
“We don’t want laws that are over-regulating the people. Instead, the important thing here is education.
“I read an opinion piece by veteran journalist (Datuk) A. Kadir Jasin who said that although news could be obtained easily through mobile phones, people these days prefer to seek real news from mainstream media like newspapers and television.
“This is because reporters of the mass media are not allowed to publish news as they please without the supervision of their editors.
“There is internal monitoring within the agencies, compared to information obtained easily through social media where the news is monitored by a single person.
“This brings us back to the matter of educating the people (and) there is better public awareness.
“Always remember to filter the news first and do not accept them without verifying the information.
“We don’t want fake news, but the other existing laws including Penal Code and Communications and Multimedia Act are sufficient to address this,” he said during the debate on Anti-Fake News (Repeal) Bill 2019 today.
Meanwhile, Shaharizukirnain Abd Kadir (Pas-Setiu) said the Act should be maintained and seen as a complementary law to existing ones.
He said it was disheartening to see fake news spread on social media, especially during election campaign periods, to tarnish the image of others.
One such example, he said, was an article by Sarawak Report published in 2016 which had alleged that Pas had received RM90 million from Umno.
“The former MACC chief had said the party had never received any money from 1MDB (1Malaysia Development Bhd).
“The Federal Constitution provides for freedom of speech to citizens.
“However, we must remember that such freedom is not absolute as there are boundaries that must be respected, especially when it comes to religion and race,” said Shaharizukirnain.
The debate on the bill resumes tomorrow.
Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad had in April said Malaysia could do away with the law as the people should know how to handle the spread of fake news.