HERE’S a bit of cheer amid the gloom. According to recent reports, Malaysia has been ranked 101st globally in the 2020 World Press Freedom Index, compiled by Reporters Without Borders (RSF).

Malaysia registered the biggest rise among 180 countries, improving by 22 places, according to the media watchdog group. It credited the change in government through election — namely the 14th general election in 2018 — as a factor for the climb in ranking.

Veteran media activist Ahmad Lutfi Othman attributes the upward movement to the changes put in place by the Pakatan Harapan government. Press freedom was one of the landmark pledges of PH.

Lutfi, by his own admission, is pro-PH. Still, what he says about the PH government unshackling the media cannot be denied. Hence, he says the “dark era of the past” must never be allowed to return.

“The fear is about the tendency of the current backdoor government to control or stifle freedom of expression. A free media is a pillar of democracy,” says Lutfi.

So, has the Perikatan Nasional (PN) government put the shackles back on the Malaysian media? Veteran journalist Datuk A Kadir Jasin certainly thinks so.

“Just hours before the fall of the Pakatan Harapan government, I warned the media that they could be losing their freedom if the PH government was toppled. And now, it seems that the BN-era wahyu is back,” says Kadir.

Wahyu is Malay for revelation, usually used to describe a divine command. But among the local media, the term is used to refer to instructions from the higher-ups, in particular the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) telling the media how to cover certain issues, especially political ones.

Kadir cites an example. Sources told him that a publication had to change a headline following a wahyu from Putrajaya. The said headline apparently was seen as being hard on the prime minister and was replaced by one with a softer tone.

“Please deny if I’m wrong and I am ready to apologise,” wrote Kadir on his Facebook page some weeks ago.

I asked him recently if there was any denial. He replied, “I think denial is secondary. The more important question is, who would dare to own up?” In short, there was neither denial nor owning up.

Kadir is a Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia supreme council member and was special media adviser to former prime minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad. Still, it would not be right to dismiss what he had said just because of his links with the previous government.

Some journalists allege that they get instructions from their bosses to ensure that Putrajaya-friendly news is produced. It could be that the editors are getting the wahyu directly or a matter of self-censorship just to play safe.

A few days ago, the prime minister was interviewed on national television. The special session was conducted jointly by the Astro Awani news channel and state-owned Radio Televisyen Malaysia and carried on all television stations simultaneously.

Considering the current need for health precautions and cost-cutting, this makes sense. The interview was conducted by just two people and shared with all channels, taking care of a lot of manpower and logistical issues.

At the same time, it can be seen as the government wanting to control what the people hear and see. This modus operandi is the usual practice of authoritarian regimes or countries with a weak democratic basis.

A retired journalist opines, “The interview was disappointing. The questions asked had hardly any story value — too tame, lame and very predictable.”

A practising journalist could not help but ask if the questions “were chosen by the PMO”.

I would say that some media organisations are now getting “advice” on the dos and don’ts and others are not. Otherwise, you would not be reading this article here, would you?

Back to the World Press Freedom Index. According to the RSF, the latest index suggests that the next 10 years would be pivotal for journalism as it deals with geopolitical, technological, democratic and economic crises as well as a crisis of trust.

RSF secretary-general Christophe Deloire says the Covid-19 pandemic has illustrated the negative factors threatening the right to reliable information and is itself an exacerbating factor.

There is a clear correlation, he says, between suppression of media freedom and the response to the Covid-19 outbreak. For example, China and Iran imposed extensive censorship on coverage of the pandemic.

RSF also found that harsh legislation against fake news on Covid-19 in Iraq and Hungary shows that the ongoing public health crisis has allowed authoritarian governments to implement a notorious “shock doctrine”.

There is no such shock doctrine here but the government’s interpretation of fake news is, nevertheless, a concern, that is, if criticism against ministers and the government is classified as fake news.

A big worry is Senior Minister (Security Cluster) Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob’s warning that stern action will be taken against the media for “confusing and inaccurate” articles regarding government statements.

Deloire notes that there are countries taking advantage of the fact that politics is on hold, the public is stunned and protests are out of the question in order to impose measures that would be impossible in normal times.

Hence, he says, “for this decisive decade to not be a disastrous one, people of goodwill, whoever they are, must campaign for journalists to be able to fulfil their role as society’s trusted third parties, which means they must have the capacity to do so”.

Lastly, whatever happened to our media council? The one the PH government tried to introduce before it lost power in February’s political coup. The aim of the council was to strengthen freedom of the press and ensure that the rights of its practitioners are covered while promoting ethical media practices.

Hopefully, it is just being put on hold to allow the current administration to tackle the pandemic. Once we have overcome this nightmare, I hope the PN government will put it back on track and not flush it down the drain.

Mohsin Abdullah is a contributing editor at The Edge. He has covered politics for more than four decades.