Asia Sentinel

Home

Politics

Malaysia

Malaysia's Anti-Opposition Bloggers

Written by Our Correspondent

Tuesday, 07 February 2012

•

Ahiruddin says I did it with my little hatchet

Does Kuala Lumpur have a home-grown version of China’s ’50-centers?’

Is Malaysia getting its own version of China’s so-called 50-centers, the legions of Chinese bloggers who monitor websites and reply to criticism of the government for money?

Ahiruddin Attan, the Kuala Lumpur-based pro-government blogger who writes under the name “Rocky’s Bru” says last September he pulled together friends to set up what he calls a small news portal called The Mole with the idea “to give certain balance to the reports of Malaysiakini, Malaysian Insider, Malaysia Today.”

In Ahiruddin’s view, “there are too many anti-establishment, anti-government sites in Malaysia.”

The Malaysian Insider reported last year that the government had provided US$10 million for the project. Other reports circulating in Malaysian political circles say the bloggers have been provided with US$10 million by the United Malaysia National Organization, the country’s biggest political party, and another US$10 million from the Malaysian billionaire Syed Mokhtar al Bukhary to follow the proliferating anti-establishment news organizations that are thronging Malaysia and state the government’s viewpoint.

But, Ahiruddin said in a telephone interview: “That US$10 million is totally crap. There is no truth at all in it. We are really small.” A former editor of a variety of UMNO publications including the Business Times, The Malay Mail and The Sunday Mail, he says he derives his current income from his continuing directorship at the Mail, a Kuala Lumpur-based daily tabloid. To reports that he had bought a Harley-Davidson motorcycle with his new-found wealth, he snorted. The Harley, he said, is 12 years old.

Despite Ahiruddin’s denials, other sources insist that at least 10 to 15 people are involved in the effort, with government support.

Because all of Malaysia’s mainstream media, including newspapers and television, are owned by its ruling political parties the country has generated perhaps the most vociferous opposition Internet news portals in the region, with some, including Malaysiakini and the Malaysian Insider, providing professional coverage of the government.

Although government officials grit their teeth over what the news portals publish, they have adhered to a pledge made by former Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad to leave the Internet censorship-free. Mahathir made the pledge in 1995 to promote the international development of his multi-media Super Corridor, which was designed to attract high-tech industry across the globe. In 1998, the government allowed Malaysiakini to begin operations.

The result, along with the proliferation of news sites, most of them anti-government, has been an explosion of readers who gather their news from the Internet. According to Freedom House, a whopping 55 percent of Malaysians had access to the Internet in 2011. And, the NGO said: “In the watershed elections of March 2008, the ruling National Front coalition lost its two-thirds majority for the first time since 1969. In addition, opposition parties won control of five of the country’s 13 states, including those with relatively high Internet penetration rates…Together with the growing popularity of independent online news outlets, the use of the Internet for political mobilization was widely perceived as contributing to the opposition’s electoral gains.”

“Any blog that is registered, we will pick up their story automatically, we only pick up some stories to follow up, to do follow-through,” Ahiruddin said. “Talk about a blog war room is totally crap.”

The so-called “50-cent party” arose in China in 2005 when Nanjing University officials hired students to search bulletin boards for undesirable information and counter it with comments friendly to the Communist Party. The price for each entry was said to be half a yuan (0.8 US cents) although varying prices have been paid by different Chinese organizations.

The result has been a deluge of comments, not only on Chinese bulletin boards but almost any Internet publication across the globe that contains stories about China. Any even-mildly negative story about China on the pages of Asia Sentinel is certain to generate swift and angry replies charging a pro-US bias, calling attention to the once-dominant history of western colonizers in China and decrying US interference in international affairs.

Set as favorite

Bookmark

Email This

Comments (11) Add Comment

Subscribe to this comment's feed

Malaysia's Anti opposition bloggers
written by Bang, February 07, 2012

To use the word anti-government is misleading. They are there to criticize and expose the wrong doings of the authorities which Malaysians are unable to read in the government controlled media.
No one in the right mind will against these criticisms and exposures,unless is paid to do the mercenary jobs.

Malaysia's Anti opposition bloggers
written by mamakthir, February 08, 2012

Of course these anti opposition blooger mercenaries would deny that they are not paid by the malaysian govt., they are just as corrupt as the govt, as they would want to retain the status quo i.e masuk more of the money from the malaysian taxpayers . These greedy people just do not want the gravy train to stop, so anyone that criticised the malaysian government about their corruption is labelled "anti-government"

..., Lowly rated comment [Show]

boleh
written by 1malaysia boleh, February 08, 2012

you are labelled as anti-government if you reported a corruption case in the government.
you are not allowed to write or report of any corruption involved government officers, if you did, you are anti-government...... Malaysia Boleh

...
written by allen, February 08, 2012

I don't think Malaysiakini, Malaysian Insider and Malaysian Insider are anti government; they are merely reporting the wrong doings of the government of the day. All the mainstream media are control by the ruling parties (UMNO & MCA), all their news are skewed.

...
written by Cody.S, February 08, 2012

Well, I do believe that these ".50 centers" exist. China does go out of their way to determine where the negative writings are and they will pay their people to counteract it. They only want good things written. So it is no surprise that "last September he pulled together friends to set up what he calls a small news portal called The Mole with the idea to give certain balance to the reports of Malaysiakini, Malaysian Insider, Malaysia Today.Ӕ would be happening.

China paying people to post good things about the government and the country really is true to form actually because they want control and that is what it really is!

..., Lowly rated comment [Show]

Short Changed
written by Anti-Rocky's Bru, February 09, 2012

Ahiruddin, if I were you, I'll go find out who has highjacked MY share of the USD10 million

...
written by Faith, February 10, 2012

Ahiruddin,

Please visit http://www.brutalitymalaysia.blogspot.com

Would you consider this as being anti govt?

Could you please bring it to the attention of the relevent persons in authority.

Thank you.

Spiritual Guru
written by Peaaaaace of Mind, February 19, 2012

The worse profession in life is writing stories to cover the truth and protect wrong doers for the sake of money. Its wrong livelihood and the consequence in the afterlife is definitely bad.

...
written by ali baba, March 11, 2012

the weight of public opinion is so much against UMNO and its racist ideology and the blatant corruption and abuse of power over the course of close to 50 years that it is absolutely ludricous that you have people like this buffoon and a sorry example of a journalist(if you can call him one) who tries to 'defend' UMNO and the national front government.
the arab spring has dawned on malaysia in more ways than the UNMO people care to admit; who cares? you die in your own ignorant bliss and shit you created....Mahathir will be the first. Shalom!