We Shift the Channel when Mahathir Appears’: The Political Internet and Censorship in Malaysia
Abstract
A powerful form of ethnic state nationalism, driven by the dominant political party in Malaysia United Malays National Organisation (UMNO), aspires to partake in globalisation by marketing information and communications technology (ICT), and the Internet in particular. The Internet has effected drastic political and cultural changes in contemporary Malaysia. This article argues that ‘the political’ in modern Malaysia is best explored in the interfaces between the state’s Internet fascination, censorship and authoritarianism on the one hand and, on the other hand, everyday media consumption in what Michael Herzfeld has called ‘cultural intimacy’ among the emerging Malay middle class. Discussing ethnographic material from suburban Malay middle-class homes collected in 2001-2002, I show how these Malays understand and appropriate the Islamic political party Parti Islam SeMalaysia’s (PAS) bid to promote itself as a modern and democratic party by launching the website HarakahDaily.net in the tense political and religious atmosphere post-9/11. I situate this piece of historical ethnography in recent transformations of the political Internet and censorship in Malaysia.
Keywords: Mahathir, political Internet, censorship Malaysia, Malay middle class
ABSTRAK
Satu bentuk nasionalisme yang berpengaruh dan berteraskan etnik, digerakkan oleh parti politik yang dominan di Malaysia, iaitu United Malays National Organisation (UMNO), berhasrat menyertai globalisasi dengan memasarkan teknologi maklumat dan komunikasi (ICT), khususnya Internet. Internet telah membawa perubahan politik dan budaya yang drastik di Malaysia masa kini. Makalah ini membahaskan bahawa cara paling baik untuk meninjau aspek ‘politikal’ dalam Malaysia moden ialah dengan meninjau ruang hubung kait antara kepesonaan state dengan Internet, penapisan dan autoritarianisme pada satu pihak dan, pada satu pihak yang lain, penggunaan harian media dalam apa yang digelar oleh Michael Herzfeld sebagai ‘cultural intimacy’ dalam kalangan anggota kelas menengah yang baru. Dengan membincang bahan etnografi yang telah terkumpul daripada kediaman kelas menengah Melayu suburban pada tahun 2001-2002, penulis menunjukkan bagaimana golongan Melayu menengah ini memahami dan mewajarkan usaha Parti Islam se-Malaysia (PAS) mempromosi dirinya sebagai sebuah parti yang moden lagi demokratik dengan melancarkan laman web HarakahDaily.net semasa dalam suasana politik dan agama yang tegang pasca 9/11. Penulis telah meletakkan etnografi sejarah ini dalam transformasi terkini politik Internet dan penapisan di Malaysia.
Kata kunci: Mahathir, Internet politik, penyisihan Malaysia, kelas menengah Melayu
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