IT growth effecting changes in M’sian democracy: UKM lecturers

[Bala Pillai <bala@apic.net>]

http://www.malaysiakini.com/News/2001/08/2001080904.php3

IT growth effecting changes in M'sian democracy: UKM lecturers
Susan Loone

                  3:26pm, Thu: The advancement of Information technology 
(IT) has brought about changes to the development of democracy in Malaysia, 
said two Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM) lecturers.

Nidzam Sulaiman and Zaini Othman said although the widening democratic 
space is in a virtual form, it has conceptually opened societies to 
opportunities for political participation in an atmosphere of less fear.

"This democratic space is seen to be beyond the control and dominance of 
the ruling government whether legally or mentally," they said.

The lecturers said this when presenting a paper entitled 'Information 
Technology, Cyber Power and Democracy' at the Malaysian Studies Conference 
in UKM yesterday.

According to them the growth of IT knowledge and cyber power have also 
released the grip of the government's intellectual hegemony which is 
evident in Malaysia's limited democratic space.

Pseudo-democracy

Meanwhile, an Australian lecturer said at the same conference that Malaysia 
has been frequently depicted as an exemplary pseudo-democracy with its 
government armored in single-party dominance.

William Case of Griffith University Brisbane said the Malaysian government 
has thus "greatly limited but not extinguished civil liberties, while 
distorting, but not tightly rigging electoral procedures".

"Indeed, what stands out in Malaysian elections is the extent to which they 
are competitive, enabling the opposition to routinely win 40 to 45 percent 
of the popular vote at the parliamentary level, while capturing some of the 
state assemblies outright," said Case.

"Accordingly, despite the gerrymandering, mal-apportionment, and highly 
partisan use of state facilities and media outlets, rule bending has never 
been so severe that exasperated opposition parties have responded with 
boycotts, street actions, organised rural violence or other anti- system 
strategies," he added.

Dutifully endorsed

Case claimed that these characteristics of Malaysian elections were often 
dutifully endorsed by a 'pliable' Election Commission.

"Instead opposition parties have duly taken their seats in Parliament and 
state assemblies, there to try and keep the state government at least 
mildly accountable," he added.

Case said that Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad had been able to draw 
deftly upon the electoral competitiveness that takes place to add 
legitimacy to his government's tenure.

"He (Mahathir) thus advises plausibly, or at least not absurdly, 'Our way 
is through general elections. If (the people) like us they will elect us. 
If they don't they can elect someone else'," he quoted the premier as 
saying in the New Straits Times (April 21).

Case presented a paper entitled 'Elections as Flywheels: Advancing or 
Reversing Malaysia's Hard-driving Democracy?' at the three-day conference 
which ends today.

The conference with the theme 'Malaysia in Transformation: Problems and 
Challenges' was organised by Malaysian Social Sciences Association, in 
collaboration with UKM's Institute of Malaysian and International Studies 
and Institute of the Malay World and Civilisation.

The topics covered at the conference include government and politics, 
labour, immigration and management, women and development, science and 
technology, environment and society, education and health, international 
relations, globalisation and culture, language and literature.

Bala Pillai  <bala@apic.net>, sydney, australia
Founder,  The Asia Pacific Internet Company <www.apic.net> (since 1995)
Networking Minds in Halls Without Walls (*sm)
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