Catholic Herald gets its permit
December 31, 2007
Malaysiakini reports that the Internal Security Ministry has allowed the Catholic weekly, ‘Herald’, to continue to print without any condition, after earlier threatening to revoke its licence or subject the renewed licence with conditions related to the use of the word ‘Allah’ in its publication, and with regard to the continuance of its BM section.
The report has it that ‘In a press statement, Herald editor Father Lawrence Andrew said that the letter from the Internal Security Ministry - which was hand delivered to the newspaper at about 10am today - “places no restriction whatsoever, and includes the permit for all languages, including the Bahasa Malaysia segment” ‘ and that Bernard Dompok, minister in the Prime Minister’s Department, had said that he had spoken to Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi over the problems faced by Catholics.
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What about next year when the licence comes up for renewal and the 12th General Elections has come and gone?
Will the Herald then face another round of ‘cannot use Allah and cannot publish in BM’?
Will Dompok speak to Pak Lah again?
Does the right to publish news for the congregation hinge on the goodwill between one BN leader and another?
Boycott the newspapers ! (6)
December 30, 2007
Starting today, a permanent page entitled ‘Hartal : Boycott the lying newspapers’ will be linked on the right. It will operate as a one-stop centre for this initiative to bring the falsehood mongering MSM to its knees.
Below, Helen is still fine-tuning the strategy.
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Haris’ Boycott (4) grabbed me with its naughty twist on how we could try using the existing vendor network to disseminate truth. There’s no harm sounding out your neighbourhood deliveryman on the idea, which might come in useful when the BN propaganda goes full blast in the election run-up.
Let’s explore this further & fine-tune if we want to employ vendors to help get us through the door where flyers may not float past the junk mailbox. For instance, do we send out a standard piece of counter-news to rebut the MSM lies? Meaning People’s Parliament becomes the clearing house or Info Central where people can pdf the anti-spin of the day?
E.g. Compare and contrast. NST editorial: ‘The rule of law’ arguing that defiance of any law cannot be defended under any circumstances. Malaysia Today: Letter by former Bar Council president Yeo Yang Poh addressing points raised in the editorial, worth reading here http://www.malaysia-today.net/2008/content/view/54/36/.
The NST line is how the government keeps us toeing the line. The authorities have criminalised our freedoms, thus inclining us to do nothing because to do something or to do anything would be breaking some law or other (of the BN by the BN for the benefit of the BN).
But I have to concede a point to Birdseye who discouraged the vendor approach. He’s sceptical as to how long the initiative can be kept up. As a short-term weaning period to reach those suburbanites habituated to reading in print, it’s viable.
In the long-term, admittedly we can’t carry the vendors’ and news agents’ financial losses. Birdseye says: “Now, should I be responsible for the economic well being of the MSM’s employees and their motor-bike agents? Not a chance. It is not my fault if they do not have a product that appeals to me.”
If we were to discourage smoking, we’d cause cigarette sellers to lose business. Well, Malaysian government mouthpieces are bad for health and poisonous, just like cancer sticks. And the big picture we need to keep in mind is the irreparable harm their spin is doing our country.
As Birdseye also said in an earlier post, globally newspaper readership is dwindling. The next generation is not as addicted to newspapers as their parents are. Major international news corps are already diverting their investments to new online products. Since this is the irreversible trend, our vendors would eventually be impacted in any case. What we’re doing is precipitating the process.
As with any other job, one must constantly upgrade, unlearn, relearn. We have to encourage newsagents to sell more appealing goods. For example, have them tell their customers if they discard a week’s supply of The Star, with the savings one can instead buy the weekly magazine The Economist (engaging, quality writing!).
Remember how obnoxious KJ was about the vendors not delivering newspapers on Deepavali and depriving Malaysians of reading his father-in-law’s Umno presidential address? The People’s Parliament may hurt Indian vendors but we’re not threatening their rice bowl out of contempt like KJ. We’re pressed by necessity.
The long view, which we must all take, is that uber economic parasites like KJ are given free rein to lord it over us and over “small-time people” (with whom Lucia’s sympathies lie). Indian vendors are not at the top of the food chain and poorer Indians are the community that has been most royally screwed by the system; this same system that propels the KJ-types to the apex of the pecking order.
When our economy nosedives, when – not ‘if’– we fall into a recession (and cost of living is even today pinching us badly), these Indian vendors, news agents and all of us are in for shit if we don’t even attempt now to plug the leaky boat. Then what do we do? Bail out?
And need I go into how MSM are hand-in-glove with the regime that is surely sinking our ship?
CALLING for input: At present, there are e-groups like Berita Malaysia which sends out a selection of News of the Day – both alternative and from MSM – to its mailing list, thus providing a wider sampling than if a person were to read just one newspaper. What are the other options we could explore?
As to how “costly” it is to distribute A4s, can someone please do the math? And give suggestions on how we can pool our resources to concentrate this plan in the marginal areas, i.e. the Parliamentary constituencies where we can swing votes.
Boycott the newspapers ! (5)
December 29, 2007
( Used with the kind permission of http://bodohland.wordpress.com )
I have had enough.
Several other readers have had enough.
CHK suggested that we form a committee to properly manage this effort.
That committee has been set up.
If you would like to work with that committee, are prepared to disclose your identity so that the committee can verify that you are not SB or an UMNO cybertrooper, send an e-mail to thepeoplesparliament@gmail.com
Flash Mob Against Spin-doctoring
December 29, 2007
UPDATE :
Kaki Ayam asked :
Why limit this to KLCC? Not everyone will feel like going to KL on a public holiday…
Why don’t we have it simultaneously at different locations?
keke…this should be fun…i shall do my part at The Curve…keke
Me thinks that’s a great idea.
If newspaper dumping takes place anywhere else, how about taking pictures and sending them in with a brief note to share with others?
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Someone sent in a comment earlier about this initiative. You can check out the postings on this effort HERE and HERE.
I’ve reproduced below the translation of the announced initiative that was sent in earlier as part of the comment.
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FLASH MOB AGAINST SPIN-DOCTORING
Venue : Main Concourse, Suria KLCC, KL
Date: 1 Jan 2008 (Public Holiday)
Time: 3pm
What to do:
1. Go to Suria KLCC Main Concourse on 1 Jan 2008 at 3pm.
2. Bring a copy of local newspaper; it can be The Star, NST, Metro, Malay Mail, Utusan Melayu, Berita Harian, Sin Chew Jit Poh, Nanyang Siang Pow, or any Tamil dailies.
3. At 3.30pm sharp, crumple the newspapers and throw them inside the rubbish bins.
4. Disperse IMMEDIATELY
NOTE: DO NOT LITTER. If the rubbish bins are full, stack your newspapers on top of the pile. If you can’t do that, find other rubbish bins at 1st Floor or other floors.
The ultimate goal is to dump the newspapers collectively as a sign of protest!!
“And what reason have you that you should not fight in the way of God and of the weak among the men and the women and the children, for those who say: Our Lord! cause us to go forth from this town, whose people are oppressors, and give us from Thee a guardian and give us from Thee a helper”
Surah 4 verse 75 of the Holy Qur’an
“O you who believe, seek assistance through patience and prayer, for surely God is with the patient. And do not speak of those who are slain in God’s way as dead. Nay, they live, but you do not perceive it. And We will most certainly try you with somewhat of fear and hunger and loss of property and lives and fruits, but give glad tidings to those who are patient, who, when misfortune befalls them, say: Surely we are God’s and to Him we shall surely return”
- Surah 2 verses 153 -156 of the Holy Qur’an
“Ah, thou soul at peace, return unto thy Lord, content in His good pleasure! Enter thou among My servants! Enter thou My Garden!”
Surah 89 verses 27 - 30 of the Holy Qur’an
The people say : Boycott the newspapers !
December 27, 2007
Helen put this together from comments that have come to this blog.
People, are we on to something, or what?
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Birdseye — the Star Wars fan intones— Yoda-like, “Sock it to the papers we must.” Hartal on mainstream media is neither a new nor original idea but it’s an idea whose time has come.
We’ve collated the comment snippets below in chronological order from various threads in the People’s Parliament. They were posted in several spurts, from which we can trace the idea germinating in the aftermath of Bersih’s 10-Eleven, and picking up momentum following public disgust at the MSM spin on Hindraf’s march.
The government crackdown on Bersih and Hindraf leaders has only hardened our resolve. When MSM, on cue, commenced its shameless spinning over-the-top, it prompted us …We, the People, to say ‘Enough is Enough!’ in a single cohesive voice.
This is a Signature Corner and podium for everyone who supports Hartal to declare their stand.
1. Birdseye Says:
November 13, 2007 at 1:17 pm The internet provides all the news I care about so I have not bought a newspaper for the last three years. If I want to see how the Star is ’skewing’ a certain event, like 10-11, I just log on to their website. It is a gross insult to have to pay for their propaganda.
2. yh Says:
November 14, 2007 at 2:10 pm when the sale of papers dry up, advertisement will go the same way. simply, if there are less readers, there is less incentive to advertise. i have steadfastly boycotted nasty pee and his gang of related papers since their unfair suit against jeff ooi and rocky. after decades of support for “THE PEOPLE’s” paper, i am now jettison the now state propaganda paper. Here, I come “THE SUN” and I am going to subscribe for “Malaysiakini”.
3. ewoon Says:
November 14, 2007 at 3:43 pm Down with mainstream newspapers! Boycott them. Let their advertisers know how we feel.
4. farida Says:
November 14, 2007 at 6:24 pm I have just called my news vendor and cancelled my subscription to the Star.
# 2 yh Says:
November 14, 2007 at 9:10 pm farida way to go and you have company. no more STAR paper for me. if the SUN goes the same way, I will not hesitate to jettison it.
5. Ben Says:
November 14, 2007 at 10:56 pm Hallelujah! We have seen the light! For a while I have been wondering whether I did the right thing by boycotting the mainstream media, newspaper and TV news, 6 years ago. Now I know I did the right thing and definitely have a better perspective reading real news like M2Day, socio-politic blogs and of course People’s Parliament. Thats the way we do it.
6. animah Says:
November 15, 2007 at 1:33 pm Just stop buying the papers - yes advertisers do look at circulation figures.
7. Din Merican Says:
November 29, 2007 at 3:00 pm I fully support the boycott by the public of the major newspapers like the NST, The Star, Berita Harian and Utusan Malaysia and others. This initiative should be welcome by all Malaysians. But please use it as means to also promote the cause of free media and freedom of speech.
8. VicRail Says:
November 29, 2007 at 10:30 pm What a wonderful idea.
9. balmen Says:
November 30, 2007 at 5:56 pm VicRail’s suggestion sounds good. I intend to boycott all MSM on the 20th of every month to start with.
10. Yong Says:
December 1, 2007 at 9:03 pm I stop reading newspaper since last year! Will continue to do so.
11. susah-hati Says:
December 1, 2007 at 10:03 pm Now is the time boycott all the government mouthpieces NST, MALAY MAIL, Utusan and the Rest. Turn to independent
news sources. Dont read bullshit. We cannot be fooled anymore.
12. Kean Says:
December 2, 2007 at 6:28 am I’ve been boycotting local newspaper for more then 2 years and I happy to continue until they are free from the grasp of our useless government. Want local news? Goggle la, duh. Why so stupid paying RM1.50 for The Star just to read all those lies!
13. Nilesh Says:
December 13, 2007 at 3:29 pm “I am going to boycott all products and services advertised in our local newspapers.” easy to be said then to be done.
14. CHK Says:
December 21, 2007 at 3:43 pm Boycotting newspapers is one way. In parallel to boycott, I would like to suggest another method - go straight for the advertisers in these media.
15. kimchan Says:
December 21, 2007 at 7:41 pm I have started boycotting the MSM, perhaps more than 5 years ago. I will sign up to help getting a new MP for Segambut, and yes, I will boycott the major products advertised in the MSM.
16. crankshafted Says:
December 21, 2007 at 8:13 pm Haris, I’m fully in support of boycotting the newspapers, but I like your idea of boycotting even the advertisers.
17. toyolbuster Says:
December 21, 2007 at 11:54 pm I have stopped buying MSM papers for a long time now. Saved a lot and every 2 months, I get to take my family out for a real treat with the savings. But I must confess, last week, I went to chow kit to buy some fish and a whole load of seafood for a BBQ dinner. I didn’t want to dirty my car, so I bought a paper (not going to mention which one in case they do a dirty one on me) to line the boot and floor mats. I chose the page with you know who’s photo on, for my floor mat and I enjoyed stepping onto it. And the rest, went into the BBQ pit
18. what the Says:
December 22, 2007 at 1:02 am Don’t boycott the newspapers, boycott buying them, read free ones from coffee shop, news from either side we must read, even if one side is full of Bullshits. Don’t spend your hard earn money into buying shits that you will only discard at the end of the day or use it to wrap up your pet poos. that’s my two cents worth of logic. incidently, since I cancelled my newspaper subscription and switched to free kopitiam papers in 2003+, I believe I have saved RM 1000+ .
19. Surind Says:
December 22, 2007 at 2:09 am I support the call!
20. (a). vanaja panickar Says:
December 22, 2007 at 10:22 am I stopped buying main stream newspapers many years ago who Dr.M was still PM. …So dear Malaysians, please follow Haris’s and my advice. Stop buying MSM. Only where there is demand there will be supply. We can, if we want to, put them out of circulation.
20. (b). vanaja panickar Says:
December 22, 2007 at 10:25 am Oh, I forgot to add, I buy such newspapers when I need to use them as “toilet paper” for my cats
21. K P VARAN Says:
December 22, 2007 at 3:05 pm A long time ago, perhaps more than 15 years ago I stopped buying the Straits Times / New Straits Times; the STAR; Tamil Nesan and another tamil daily when it became too vivdly clear that these publications along with the erstwhile BERNAMA were the eloquent mouth pieces of the Politicians who were taking the Malaysian citizens for a ride through their rampant pillaging and looting of citizens’ funds.
22. Sky Says:
December 23, 2007 at 7:20 am The last time I read any online malaysian news was during the revathy situation and when Irene Fernandez got some peace price in Sweden and not one single media picked it up. So now i turn to blogs such as yours for the real news thank god for bloggers!
23. tokio Says:
December 23, 2007 at 12:48 pm One more can make a difference. I’ll terminate my subscription to the STAR newspaper and will not buy any other MSM.
24. Free Malaysia Says:
December 24, 2007 at 9:57 am I have stopped newspapers being delivered to my house since last month. And the only thing I miss is the sports section actually - EPL live telecast matches schedule No point spending about RM75.00 per month for a bunch of lies.
25. lostasylum Says:
December 24, 2007 at 10:27 am have stopped buying star for a long time now. the only papers i read is the Sun, who are the most “left-wing” and also because i get it free in the office.
26. Anti MSM Says:
December 24, 2007 at 10:57 am Bravo, bravo. My family do not waste our money buying the MSM which are full of lies, distortions, manipulation of news, half-truths, or complete omission of important news. Boycott them all dear friends, when the circulations drop, the advertisers will quickly desert them. It is useful to note here that the circulation of the NST is boosted by hotels which are giving this rag free to their guests (often without any opportunity for any choosing other paper.) In such cases, those with pets can always take it home and use the newsprint to line their pet animal’s litter tray, or cage!!!
27. BobSam Says:
December 24, 2007 at 11:49 am I have cancelled my daily subscription to NST since the legal action against Jeff & Rocky. But have replaced it with home delivery of The Sun.
28. Equalizer Says:
December 24, 2007 at 12:14 pm I agree. All we get daily is a dose of government crap and bullshit from the UMNO/MCA/MIC papers. Its time we HARTAL them. But I would request that we NOT boycott the Sun. Its the only progressive mainstream paper but they are under tremendous pressure especially from Zambie and the fourth floor JPM cowards.
29. didee Says:
December 24, 2007 at 12:19 pm I’ve also stopped buying the ewspapers for a while now. Though i have to confess that I do read The Sun sometimes (It’s FREE!!!).
30. maheswaran subramaniam Says:
December 24, 2007 at 2:11 pm newspapers like the STAR, STRAITS TIMES is waste of money. there is more adverts than news and we need to pay too read all those adverts while these medias earn both ways. the news is crab except the sports and business. this is the only reason i buy the star but with internet why the heck we need to buy these papers. might as well donate this money to some charity
31. trashed Says:
December 25, 2007 at 6:58 am From what Haris says, the thrust of this initiative is to AVOID PAYING for NEWPAPERS. Doesn’t mean you don’t read the papers. Anyway, for me, I only access the MSM online. At some point in time, they will have to pdf the whole paper online anyway, so we should get used to it already. Besides, fewer trees are going to get cut down.
32. Reinu Balakrishnan Says:
December 25, 2007 at 11:55 am I have not bought the papers in 8 years !!! I am forced to read STAR online to see if there are new rules, law changes, tax and other ‘LIFE’ altering money grabbing regulatings like fuel, toll, and other changes. If someone can update this on their blogs daily, NO MORE STAR ONLINE FOR ME. Thanks. We must punish liars and they are a plenty from the Govt TV and PAPERS. LIES, LIES, all the time.
33. fletcher Says:
December 25, 2007 at 12:01 pm I have been boycotting the msm for the past 8 months and I am still doing it but do it at a larger scenerio we can start by boycotting for 1 month first and tell the delivery man to be patient and see the results after that. I am all for it.
34. neutralsite Says:
December 25, 2007 at 1:41 pm i’m stop reading local newspaper long time ago
35. GoldenApples Project Says:
December 25, 2007 at 2:19 pm Agree with the title. Newspapers are not quality content.
36. fainessforall Says:
December 25, 2007 at 2:45 pm For the past 2 years I have stopped subscribing to the newspapers as I find most of the news to be crap and lies. I rely on Malaysia Today and Malaysiakini and other blogs to get my news. They are more reliable.I am definetly for this boycott.
37. IbnAbdHalim Says:
December 25, 2007 at 6:09 pm I’ve boycotted the mainstream newspapers since reformasi days i.e. before the call for the first boycott itself. I even boycotted the electronic media.
38. Ramish Says:
December 25, 2007 at 7:02 pm I have stopped buying the newspaper along time ago. I have persuaded my other family members to stop buying as well. Indirectly we are also protecting the environment. ANY WAY ENUFF IS ENUFF about BN Propaganda
39. Osman Bakar Says:
December 25, 2007 at 7:29 pm Its time now to theese MSM a lesson . I dont buy any of it. Only read through Internet. All must boycot, then it works
40. martha Says:
December 25, 2007 at 7:56 pm No more Star for me definately. Its Malaysiakini from now on.
41. Devan N Says:
December 26, 2007 at 10:46 am Except for the Saturday and Sunday issues, I stopped buying the NST and Star about 6 years ago. Two months ago, I stopped even the Saturday and Sunday issues. I am glad to see that many others are doing the same.
42. Jason Says:
December 26, 2007 at 4:40 pm I’ve stopped buying The Star for years to save money and now I’m happy to know that not only I managed to save money, I’m also doing a good cause. I’ve been telling family and friends to stop buying MSM and will continue to do so.
# 26 Equalizer Says:
December 26, 2007 at 3:19 pm Indeed, I have stopped buying NST and Star some years back. It was just too painful to be taken in by their lies day by day. Now I just go for Malaysiakini and Malaysia Today and some other reliable blogs. But I do read The Sun though. I think they did some good exposes like the Port Klang Free Zone (PKFZ) scandal.
43. Siva Says:
December 26, 2007 at 4:10 pm After the Hindraf rally I stopped subscribing 3 newspapers i.e. The Star, NST and Tamil Nesan as I could not digest their blatant lies and nauseating head lines. I have opted to Malaysiakini
44. rajan Says:
December 26, 2007 at 4:22 pm Good Luck. HIT THEM VERY HARD WHERE IT HURTS — Their POCKETS!
45. Bee Nah Says:
December 26, 2007 at 5:57 pm Great, for the last one year, I stopped reading MSM, mostly go onto Blogs such as this.
46. Helen Ang says on December 27, 2007 at 2.47 am: I’ve compiled 45 unique comments above, and am adding my own now. I don’t read newspapers and it’s no loss. However, I do sometimes have to refer to MSM reports for my writing and this I can do online. Our emphasis for Hartal is “Don’t buy”, ‘buy’ being the operative word.
Is Sungai Siput ready for change?
December 26, 2007
Boycott the newspapers ! (4)
December 26, 2007
The concerns voiced about the impact this initiative would have on the income of the newsvendors is noted.
Does anyone know how much the vendor earns for a copy of the NST delivered to your doorstep?
RM0.20? RM0.40?
Let’s just say he makes RM0.30 for the copy he delivers to you. Multiply this by 30 days and he makes RM9.00 a month from you to deliver that 1 newspaper to you daily for the whole month. If you subscribe for 2 dailies, that’s RM18.00 per month he makes from you.
That’s the amount he stands to lose if you stop buying the papers through him.
Now what if you told him you would still pay him that RM9.00 or RM18.00, not to deliver papers to you, but to pick up copies of internet-based news that you have downloaded and photostated and to then deliver these with the newspapers he delivers on his daily rounds?
He still gets his income from you, and you get to disseminate the alternative news to those who are still buying and reading the MSM.
Nanda, would this fit in with what you and your friends are presently doing?
Just a thought.
SPR, Perak office called
December 26, 2007
Yes, I got a call from Encik Osman of the SPR, Perak office this afternoon.
He apologised for their having not responded to our letters.
Told him that the matter has been handed over to solicitors who were making ready to take this matter to court.
He told me that we will get a response to our inquiries by next week.
Told him we would defer filing any matter into court until the end of next week to await their response.
Boycott the newspapers ! (3)
December 26, 2007
Helen Ang is strategising to make her Christmas wish a reality.
Read on.
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From the feedback we’re getting, increasing numbers of people have cancelled their newspaper subscription. However, this is indiscernible if we act alone here and there. To create an impact, we need one specific period when it’s clearly demonstrated to Malaysia that a lot of us are doing this, i.e. collectively refusing to buy. Why? To spread a viral contagion like how one Walk led to another to another.
There will have to be a dedicated Boycott Week when heaps of newspapers should demonstrably be seen stacked unsold at the news stands and a similar point made in other equally unsubtle ways. We’ll let you know the date later.
For now, People’s Parliament can start a testimonial corner where anyone who has stopped buying newspapers might post his decision, share very briefly when and why, and what his alternatives are.
Scattered throughout the several threads on Boycott are already more than a dozen such accounts. We’ll collate these comments for starters (you’re free to ask Haris to remove your previous entry if you object to it re-appearing in compilation) and open up a sort of signature campaign. We can publicise this list when we launch Boycott Week. What say you?
Below are two ideas from Paul Warren and CHK, which I think are great.
Paul suggests letting media planners know that we don’t believe what the newspapers say. So how can we lend credence to what the ads claim which are printed in these untrustworthy papers? CHK suggests that we inform advertisers we will switch products because they endorse mainstream media (MSM), which means they are endorsing misinformation, e.g. instead of Milo, we will opt for another lesser-known chocolate drink.
Here’s the integrated strategy. The message we send advertisers is they’re wasting money on newspapers; the more they advertise, the more they turn us off.
We bombard the targeted major advertiser(s) with mail notifying them we will promote their competitors who have refrained from giving MSM what they love most – money. Ad revenue, not selfless community service, is the raison d’etre of these profit-chasing newspapers.
Prominent advertisers, like Pizza Hut for example, are “good corporate citizens”. We, the people, are responsible citizens who will not support products and services of corporations which irresponsibly support MSM. And we expect responsible corporate behaviour in line with our lofty aspirations. Take for instance, The Body Shop. The secret of its success was an environmentally responsible image, and founder Anita Roddick’s deliberate decision not to advertise conventionally.
People’s Parliament will tell advertisers that when we target them, we will put their product claims to the test. We are going to evaluate their corporate history. We’re going to put their activities under scrutiny. We’re going to compare them with their competitors. If they spend so much on ads, their products surely cost more in order to cover their advertising and marketing expenditure. We are against indirectly subsidising MSM in this manner!
Paul will post a sample letter, checked for its legality by Haris, which we can all send to the advertisers to urge them to re-evaluate their media strategies.
Hindraf overnight did more for public awareness of the Indian condition than MIC in the half century the party has been toadying to Umno. We can achieve the same: Negative publicity for major advertisers; winning free publicity for non-advertisers whose products and services are our recommended substitutes.
CALLING for your input: We’re now doing word of mouth and word of mouse. Let’s take this to group level. Suggest the NGOs that will come on board. E-mail thepeoplesparliament@gmail.com if you can facilitate this networking. Also talk to your Resident’s Association or other groups (religious, professional, social, etc), then roll out the bandwagon.
So far, so good … we’re on track but we need a greater sense of urgency, okay?!
