Restriction in Freedom of the Press & Assembly: Situation of the Press in Brunei

 

Image by: Open World Magazine

"Freedom of the press is not just important to democracy, it is democracy." 

 

Though often considered as a nice tourist and attraction spot, Brunei is actually severely strict in controlling its media as freedom of the press and any form of assembly which exceeds 10 people are prohibited and restricted. Even with the prominence of new media, any form of online speech made by the public is under surveillance and is heavily monitored by the authorities to ensure that everyone is complying with the law imposed by Brunei regarding the use of media, and is also within the limits of the imposed rule relating to open-speech. 

 

        The situation of the press in Brunei is neither diverse nor free. The private press is more often than not controlled by the Sultan’s family in order to implement mass media repression that will deprive millions of journalists of their own rights. Censorship is also prevalent when covering news regarding politics and religion in the country. The Sultan's decision in implementing this kind of treatment towards the press comes as no surprise as he wants to exercise his executive power and show dominance by being the ruler of both the people and the press. By controlling the media, he can also control the public as he can use the media to influence their way of thinking and perspective towards various things. 

        It is evident through the testaments of journalists who live in Brunei that the authorities are very strict in any activities that might trigger freedom of the press and any sort of assembly from media practitioners. In fact, there are sanctions that await those who violate the press rule in the Sultanate. Another worth mentioning is that any comments that could be interpreted as blasphemy or criticism of the Sultanate shall result in extreme punishment and harsh infliction to the individual as Brunei do not tolerate any opinions or news report that will put a bad light on the government and its ruler; hence why every media outlet is strictly governed by the Brunei government. Publishing any content that adversely affects the prominence of the "National Philosophy” of Brunei is punishable by three years in prison under the sedition law. 

        As if the aforementioned punishment is not enough, the government officials in Brunei strictly imposed the "Brunei Defamation Act" which punishes libel or slander by means of "broadcasting, telecommunication, or publication by a newspaper." In layman's terms, whoever defames another can be imprisoned for a term of up to 5 years and a fine regardless of one's own agenda in creating that certain media post. This means that one single mistake can cost you your freedom in Brunei, thus, instilling in the mind of the people there that it is better to not create and post any opinion or news at all and just "go with the flow" of how the government wants the news to be portrayed in the public. Though this is wrong in all aspects, we cannot really blame the majority of the people who choose to remain silent over being silenced. We can only hope that as the media continues to evolve, may the voices of the people ring louder and break the chain of media oppression along with it.

Image by: New Naratif

Reference/s Used:

BBC News. (2019). Brunei Profile - Media. Retrieved from https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-pacific-12990064

Freedom House. (2022). Brunei. Retrieved from https://freedomhouse.org/country/brunei/freedom-world/2022